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AUTHOR: 


LANDSBERG,  GRACE 

FRIEDA 


TITLE: 


ABC  OF  PHILOSOPHY 


PLACE: 


NEW  YORK 


DA  TE : 


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A  B  C  of  philosophy,  by  Grace  F.  Landsberg. 
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2  p.  l,  vii  p.,  1  1.,  lixj-xi,  21-147  p.     19J^™. 


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ABC 
of  Philosophy 


R.  F.  FENNO  &  COMPANY 
NEW  YORK 


Copyright,   1909,  by 
R.  F.  Fenno  &  Company 


II 


i 


To  my  dear  friend 
FRAULEIN  ANNA  GOETZE 


484ri77 


CONTENTS 


BOOK  I. 


Part  I. 

Chap.  I.     Introductory  Notes  on  Philoso- 
phy in  General. 
Pre-Socratic  Era. 

Chap.  II.    Physiologists: 

Thales  640-550  B.  C. 
Anaximander  about  611-547  B.  C. 
Anaximenes  about  560-502  B.  C. 

Chap.  III.     Pythagoreans  and  Eleatics: 
Pythagoras  569-470  B.  C. 
Xenophanes  570-466  B.  C. 
Parmenedes  518  B.  C. 

Chap.  IV.     Cosmologists  : 

Heraclitus  about  535-475  B.  C. 
Anaxagoras  about  499-427  B.  C. 


11 


Contents. 


Contents. 


Ill 


Chap.  V.     Atomists: 

Leucippus  about  500-400  B.  C. 
Democritiis  about  460-370  B.  C. 

Chap.  VI.     Sophists: 
Protagoras 
Gorgias 
Prodieus 

Chap.  VII.     Socrates  Jf69-S99  B.  C. 

Chap.  VIII.     Megaries: 

Euclid  of  Megara 
Cyrenaics: 

Aristipj)us  of  Cyrene 
Cynics : 

Antisthenes  438-366  B.  C. 

Diogeues  323  B.  C. 

Chap.  IX.     Plato  427-348  B.  C. 

Chap.  X.     Aristotle  of  Stagira  385-322  B.  C. 

Paet  II. 

Philosophy  following  the  era  of  Aristotle. 

Chap.  XI.     Stoics: 

Zeuo  about  300  B.  C. 
Panetius  180-112  B.  C. 
Posidamius 


Seneca  about  1  A.  D.— 65  A.  D. 
Epictetus 

Marcus  Aurelius   Antoninus   121- 
180  A.  D. 

Chap.  XII.    Epicureans: 

Epicurus  342-275  B.  C. 

Lucretius  90-55  B.  C. 
Chap.  XIII.     Sceptics: 

Pyrrho  of  Elis  360-270  B.  C. 

Timon  of  Phlius  230  B.  C. 

Sextus  Empiricus  about  200  A.  D. 

Chap.  XIV.     Mystics: 

Philo  of  Alexandria  30  B.  C.  -50 
A.  D. 

Part.  III. 

Chap.  XV.     Neo-Platonism. 
Saccas  355  A.  D. 
Plotinus  205-270  A.  D. 
Proclos  412-485  A.  D. 

Part  IV. 

Christian  Philosophy. 
Chap.  XVI.     Gnostics: 

Basilides  100-150  A.  D. 


IV 


Contents. 


Clement  about  150-211  A.  D. 
Origines  185-254  A.  D. 

Chap.  XVII.     Scholastics: 

Anselm  Archbishop  of  Canterbury 

1033-1109  A.  D. 
Abelard  1079-1143  A.  D. 
Petrus  Lombardus  1160  A.  D. 
Albertus  Magnus  1193-1280  A.  D. 
Thomas  Aquinas  1225-1325  A.  D. 

BOOK  II. 

Transition  Period. 

Chap.  I.     Renaissance: 

Giordano  Bruno  1550-1600  A.  D. 
Michel  de  Montaigne  1533-1652 
Jacob  Bellmen  1575-1624 

Chap.  II.    Modern  Era  in  Philosophy: 
Lord  Bacon  1561-1626 
Thomas  Hobbes  1588-1679 

Chap.  III.     Rationalism: 

Rene  Descartes  1596-1650 
Nicolas  Malebranche  1638-1715 

Chap.  IV.     Continuation  of  the  Cartesian 

School: 
Spinoza  1632-1677 


Contents.  v 

Chap.  V.     Philosophy  in  England: 
John  Locke  1632-1714 
Sir  Isaac  Newton  1643-1727 
Anthony  Ashley  Cooper,  3rd  Earl 

of  Shaftesbury,  1671-1713 
David  Hume  1711-1776 


Chap.  VI.     Philosophy  in  France: 

Baron  de  la  Brede  et  de  Montes- 
quieu 1639-1755 
Jean  Francois  Arouet  de  Voltaire 

1694-1778 
Jean  Jacques  Rousseau  1712-1778 
Etienne  Bonnot  de  Condillac  1715- 

1780 
Claude  Adrien  Helvetius  1715-1771 
Paul  Heinrich  Dietrich,  Baron  von 
Holbach,  1723-1789 

Chap.  VII.      Philosophy  in  Oermany: 
Leibnitz  1646-1716 
Christian  von  Wolff  1679-1754 
Moses  Mendelssohn  1729-1786 
Johann  Gottfried  Herder  1744-1803 

Chap.  VIII.     Immanuel  Kant  1724-1804 


VI 


Contents. 


Contents. 


vu 


Chap.  IX.     Controversy  on  the  Teachings 

of  Kant: 
Heiurich    Friedrich    Jacobi    1743- 

1819 
Johann  Georg  Hamann  1730-1788 
Chap.   X.     Johann   Gottlieb   Fichte    1762- 

1814 
Chap.  XI.     Joseph  von  Schelling  1775-1854 
Georg  Wm.  Fried.  Hegel  1770-1831 
Friedrich     Schleiermacher     1768- 
1834 

Johann    Friedrich    Herbart    1776- 

1841 
Gustav  Theodor  Fechner  1801-1887 
XII.     French   Philosophers    of   the 
XlXth  Century: 
Auguste  Comte  1798-1857 
Pierre  Proudhon  1809-1865 
Chap.  XIII.      English  Philosophers  of  the 

XlXth  Century: 
Jeremy  Bentham  1748-1832 
John  Stuart  Mill  1806-1873 
Herbert  Spencer  1820-1904 
Chap.  XIV.     German  Philosophers  of  the 

XlXth  Century: 


Chap. 


Arthur  Schopenhauer  1788-1860 
Friedrich  Wilhelm  Nietzsche  1844- 
1900 

Carl  Robert  Eduard  v.  Hartmann 
1842-1906. 

APPENDIX 

Evolutionists. 
Chas.  Robert  Darwin  1809-1882 
Ernst  Heinrich  Haeckel  1834 
Thos.  Henry  Huxley  1825-1895 


BOOK  I. 


PREFACE. 

About  three  years  ago,  when  I  was  read- 
ing or  rather  working  through  Goethe's 
Faust  (it  took  me  over  six  months),  with 
my  dear  friend  and  teacher  Fraulein  A. 
Goetze,  I  found  that  I  could  not  appreciate 
and  understand  half  of  what  I  read,  owing 
to  the  fact  that  I  knew  nothing  at  all  of 
Philosophy — I  am  mistaken  when  I  say 
"nothing  at  all."  I  wish  it  had  been  so! 
— No,  I  had  the  usual  erroneous  ideas  of  a 
girl  of  sixteen  educated  under  the  modern 
system.  Philosophy  to  me,  meant  Fatalism, 
and  Atheism, — a  wicked  science  certainly, 
and  one  likely  to  put  its  devotees  into  a 
most  interesting  frame  of  mind!  Such  a 
state  of  affairs  could  not  last,  however,  as  I 
was  taking  my  literature  very  much  "an 
serieux."  I  hunted  accordingly  for  a  book 
which  would  give  me  in  a  simple,  clear,  and 
concise  manner,  the  elementary  theories  of 
Philosophy,  but  in  vain,— the  books  I 
bought  were  not  only  miles  beyond  my  com- 
prehension, but  the  language  used  was  so 
confusing  that  I  as  really  worse  off  than 
before.     Here  again  my  dear  Goetze  came 


Preface, 


to  my  aid  in  giving  me  a  few  clear  ideas 
on  this  subject,  and  it  was  these  notes  and 
hints  that  I  took  as  the  fundamental  basis 
of  my  book  when,  three  months  ago,  I  de- 
cided to  write  it. 

So  much  for  the  origin !  Now  for  my  pur- 
pose !  I  have  written  this  book  not  for  schol- 
ars (I  could  not  presume  that  far,  not  being 
one  myself)  but  for  those  who  in  some  cases 
would  be  glad  to,  and  in  all  cases  should, 
have  some  notions  on  so  important  a  sub- 
ject as  Philosophy.  This  is  nothing  more 
than  a  school  book,  a  primer,  or  the  A.  B.  C. 
of  Philosophy. 

I  have  tried  in  the  "Introductory  Notes" 
to  make  all  the  different  divisions  and  sub 
divisions,  as  clear  as  possible;  and  I  think 
that  the  table  will  make  the  relative  posi- 
tions of  the  theories  involved  in  them  even 
more  lucid.  I  have  tried  also  to  explain  the 
differences  and  theories  of  the  ancient  and 
modem  schools  of  Philosophy,  and  have 
named  the  individual  philosophers  and  their 
principal  teachings.  This  brings  me  to  my 
second  purpose,  namely:  a  book  of  refer- 
ence, limited,  I  grant,  as  I  have  not  given 


Preface. 


XI 


all  the  philosophers  but  only  the  more  im- 
portant ones,  my  prime  object  being  to 
write  a  book  for  beginners. 

I  do  not  claim  to  have  accomplished  my 
task  as  well  as  it  might  have  been  done  by 
someone  more  fitted  for  this  kind  of  work, 
but  I  have  not  for  a  moment  forgotten  either 
the  trouble  I  had  when  I  first  ventured  to 
peep  into  Philosophy,  nor  my  purpose  of 
saving  others  of  my  own  age  the  same  per- 
plexities. As  I  think  I  have  attained  my 
aim  in  that  respect  at  least,  I  hope  that  my 
little  book  may  fulfil  its  object. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy 


CHAPTER  I. 

IXTRODUCTOUY     NOTBS. 

The  word  ''Philosophy''  is  of  Greek  deri- 
vation and  originally  denoted  general  theo- 
retical knowledge  in  contrast  to  practical 
knowledge. 

Philosophy  is  that  general  knowledge 
which  tries  to  unite  into  one  system  all  the 
results  of  the  various  sciences,  and  to  raise 
the  manifoldness  of  conception  into  a  sin- 
gle idea,  and  the  many  ideas  into  a  highest 
idea. 

Philosophy  explains  away  the  reason  of 
contradictions  in  science,  and  endeavors  to 
remove  them. 

Philosophy  consists  of  the  same  subjects 
as  the  other  sciences,  but  the  standpoint 

21 


IM] 


22 


A  B  G  of  Philosophy. 


from  which  it  contemplates  these  subjects 
is  different,  the  aim  being  to  unite  the  var- 
ious sciences  into  one. 

From  this  last  fact  result  three  principal 
problems : 

I.  The  problem  of  ^'Metaphysics/' 

II.  The  problem  of  the  ^'Theory  of  Un- 
der standing,'' 

III.  The  problem  of  ''Ethics: 


}y 


I.  Metaphysics  is  the  science  which 
treats  of  Universal  Principles.  It  treats  of 
the  Conception  of  Being,  Becoming,  Possi- 
bility, Reality  and  Necessity. 

In  their  historical  development  these  con- 
ceptions have  necessarily  overlapped  one  an 
other;  hence  the  metaphysical  problem  di- 
vides itself  into : 

(a)  The  Ontological  Problem. 

(b)  The  Cosmological  or  Theological 
Problem, 

(a)  The  Ontological  Problem  can  be  ex- 
pressed by  the  question:  Wherein  lies  the 
nature  of  Reality? 

There  are  as  many  metaphysical  systems 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


23 


as  there  are  different  answers  to  this  ques- 
tion, the  most  important  of  them  being: 

Dualism^  Monism^  Materialism,  Spirit- 
ualism or  Idealism., 

Dualism  is  that  conception  which  takes 
for  granted  two  kinds  of  substances,  bodily 
and  mental,  extended  and  thinking. 

Monism  insists  upon  deriving  Reality 
from  One  principle  only,  and  of  tracing  the 
manifold  forms  of  being  back  to  a  single 
primitive  form.  This  result  can  be  arrived 
at  in  two  ways :  Either  the  spiritual  event 
reverts  to  the  bodily  (the  occurrences  in 
the  consciousness  are  only  the  appearances 
of  physical  occurrences,  and  we  arrive  at 
materialism),  or,  the  physical  occurrence 
reverts  to  a  mental  event.  The  physical 
world  (the  five  senses)  is  only  a  form  of  the 
mental  occurrence.  Consequently  we  ar- 
rive at  Spiritualism  or  Idealism, 

(b)  The  Cosmological  or  Theological 
Problem  can  be  expressed  by  the  question : 
What  conception  are  we  to  have  of  the 
Universe  and  of  its  cause? 

From  the  answers  we  have  three  princi- 


24 


A  B  0  of  Philosophy. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


25 


pal   theories:     Atomism^   Theism,  Panthe- 
ism. 

Atomism  assumes  that  Reality  is  a  chain 
of  eternal  uncreated  atoms  through  whose 
mutual  activity  tlie  world  was  evolved. 
From  these  manifold  atoms,  the  many  dif- 
ferent forms  of  existence  can  be  explained. 

Theism  declares  that  the  world  owes  its 
existence  to  the  definite  plans  of  a  creat- 
ing God. 

Pantheism  identifies  God  and  Nature  in 
opposition  to  Theism,  which  postulates  an 
Eternal  Cause  anterior  to  Nature  which  is 
produced  from  nothingmess. 

II.  By  "Theory  of  Understanding'^  we 
learn,  in  a  wider  sense,  the  genesis  of  ideas. 

They  belong  to  the  most  difficult  under- 
takings of  Philosophy.  Their  existence  is 
abstract,  which  necessitates  a  remarkable 
ability  in  working  with  conceptions;  and  as 
these  are  quite  dependent  on  the  progress 
of  the  individual  sciences,  a  general  knowl- 
edge of  each  science  is  required. 

To  the  question,  as  to  the  Nature  of  the 
Conception,  the  answer  is  given : 


1st.  By  Realism :  Understanding  is  the 
exact  reproduction  of  Reality.  We  see 
things  as  they  really  are,  and  as  they  ap- 
pear to  be. 

2nd.  By  Idealism,  which  asserts  that  to 
imagine  and  to  be  are  totally  different. 
Idealism  springs  from  overrating  the  un- 
derstanding which  is  given  by  Conscious- 
ness. 

To  the  question,  as  to  the  origin  of 
Knowledge,  Sensualism*  or  Empiricism 
gives  the  following  answer : 

All  knowledge  originates  from  internal 
or  external  perceptions;  every  effect  that 
is  beyond  the  scope  of  the  senses  should  be 
rejected. 

There  are  only  bodily  forces,  effects,  and 
substances.  The  faculty  of  Understanding 
in  mankind  is  only  a  function  of  a  bodily 
organ.  Rationalism  affirms  that  all  un- 
understanding  originates  from  the  Reason. 

Empiricism  endeavors  to  grasp  all 
truths,  through  the  "re-formation"  of  each 
perception  of  the  senses.     We  distinguish: 

♦Sensualism  is  in  Metaphysics  that  theory  which  bases 
all  our  mental  acts  and  intellectual  powers  upon  sensa- 
tion,— sensationalism  as  opposed  to  intellectualism. 


26 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


1.  Realistic  Empiricism:  We  know 
things  to  be  what  they  are  by  perception. 

2.  Idealistic  Empiricism:  We  know 
things  to  be  what  they  are  by  perception, 
but  we  do  not  conceive  a  perfectly  clear 
picture  corresponding  to  the  real  object. 

3.  Realistic  Rationalism:  We  know 
things  to  be  what  they  are,  but  only  through 
Beason. 

4.  Idealistic  Rationalism:  We  see  the 
world,  the  reality,  through  pure  Reason,  not 
as  it  really  is  but  as  we  imagine  it  to  be. 
The  real  substance  of  things  cannot  be  un- 
derstood. 


III.  Ethics. 

Besides  Metaphysics  and  the  Theory  of 
Understanding,  philosophy  also  treats  of 
the  Ethical  problem.  The  first  two  ques- 
tions are  the  foundation  of  the  Ethical 
problem.  They  ask :  What  is  good,  and  what 
is  evil? 

The  answers  which  are  given  by  Moral 
Philosophy  can  be  divided  into  two  prin- 
cipal   groups,    of    which    each    has    subdi- 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


27 


visions  but  which  all  agree  on  the  main 
point. 

The  first  principal  group  consists  of  the 
moral  philosophers,  who  teach  an  instinct- 
ive morality  and  who  anticipate  in  man  an 
inborn,  immediate,  moral  consciousness. 

To  the  second  group  belong  those  moral 
philosophers  who  deny  this  inborn  con- 
science and  who  derive  the  conception  of 
good  and  evil  from  the  consequences  which 
the  circumstances  bring  forth.  According 
to  the  first  group  we  are  virtuous  because 
an  inner  conscience  guides  us;  according 
to  the  second,  virtue  is  the  product  of  his- 
torical evolution,  and  we  only  acknowledge 
virtue  because  our  well-being  and  that  of 
our  fellow  creatures  depend  upon  it. 


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29 


rilE-HOVHATW  ERA. 

CHAPTER  II. 
PHYSIOLOGISTS. 

Thales,  640-550  B.  C,  of  Miletus,  is  the 
father  of  Philosophy.  It  was  he  who  first 
set  aside  the  myths  as  to  the  creation  of  the 
Universe  and  laid  the  way  for  scientific 
procedure.  He  was  celebrated  for  his  as- 
tronomical and  mathematical  knowledge, 
as  well  as  his  political  shrewdness  and 
worldly  wisdom. 

A  contemporary  was  Anaximander  (abt. 
611-547  B.  C),  the  inventor  of  the  sun-dial. 
He  believed  in  one  substance,  from  which 
everything  originated  and  then  returned  to 
the  Infinite;  the  evolution  of  the  world  be- 
gan with  the  separation  of  heat  and  cold. 
From  heat  and  cold  resulted  moisture,  and 


30 


A  B  G  of  Philosophy. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


31 


from  moisture  earth.  From  moisture 
springs  all  life.    His  pupil — 

Anaximenes  (abt.  560-502  B.  C),  en- 
larged upon  his  teachings.  He  thought  the 
creation  came  through  the  dissolution  and 
the  condensation  of  air.  Clouds,  water, 
earth,  stone  are  condensed  air;  fire  is  di- 
luted air. 

These  three  Ionic  Philosophers  are  also 
called  Hylicists  because  they  claim  matter 
as  the  fundamental  element. 


CHAPTER  III. 
PYTHAGOREANS  AND  ELEATICS. 

Pythagoras  (569-470  B.  C.)  was  born  in 
Sannos.  When  fifty  years  old  he  went  to 
Southern  Italy.  Before  that  time  he  had 
been  in  Egypt.  Ih  Italy  he  founded  a  mys- 
tical religious  society  for  moral  purposes. 
He  had  great  political  influence  and  excit- 
ed violent  animosity,  to  which  he  succumbed 
six  years  later. 

His  theory: 

Neither  water  nor  air  is  the  prime  mat- 
ter of  Nature,  but  arithmetical  propor- 
tion; the  primitive  element  is  One.  This 
comprises  everything,  as  it  cannot  be  di- 
vided. There  are  even  and  uneven  num- 
bers; the  even  ones  are  limited  numbers 
because  they  can  be  divided;  the  uneven 
ones  are  unlimited.     To  the  uneven  nnm- 


A  n  C  of  Philosophy, 


bers  belong  "evil/'  to  the  limited  "good." 
Evil  has  no  hold;  good  is  orderly. 

Through  this  teaching  the  Pythagoreans 

hoped  to  bring  harmony  into  the  universe. 
Through  these  mathematical  proxmrtions 
the  conformity  of  the  mamifoldness  is  sup- 
posed to  have  arisen. 

The  world  is  a  gradation  of  harmonic- 
ally ordered  numbers.  The  Pythagoreans 
believed  furthermore  in  ten  spheres 
(worlds)  which  revolved  around  a  central 
fire.  From  this  central  fire  streams  the 
force  that  maintains  the  Universe.  Sun, 
moon,  and  stars  move  with  stupendous  ve- 
locity, making  an  enormous  sound.*  We 
cannot  hear  this  music,*  as  we  have  not 
been  accustomed  to  it  from  our  birth. 

The  Pythagoreans  held  that  number  was 
of  the  greatest  importance  in  the  explana- 
tion of  the  world's  mechanism,  but  they 
went  too  far  in  saying  that  number  was  the 

♦Gk)ethe  defines  Pythagoras*s  Theory  in  the  Prolog  in 
Heaven  of  the  first  part  of  Faust,  as  follows: 

Die  Sonne  tont  nach  alter  Weise, 
In  Briiderspharen  Welt^esang, 

Und  ihre  Vorgeschriebene  Reise 
VoUendet  sie  mit  Donnergang. 


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33 


Inner  being  of  things.  Numbers  have  often 
led  to  mystical  interpretations. 

The  Eleatic  School  of  Philosophy  was 
founded  by  Xenophanes  (570-466)  about 
540  B.  C. 

The  gist  of  its  teaching  is  that  the  Exis- 
tence of  things  in  themselves  cannot  be 
contemplated  through  the  medium  of  our 
senses,  but  only  by  our  powers  of  reflectioB 
and  thought.  "Sense  gives  only  false  ap- 
p(»arances  of  non-being."  In  opposition  to 
the  manifold  and  ever-changing  perception 
which  our  senses  give  us  of  the  outside 
world,  the  Eleatics  put  forth  the  doctrine, 
"the  One  is  God,  self-existent,  eternal  and 
unchangeable."  Consequently  Xenophanes 
is  the  first  Monotheist,  as  well  as  the  first 
Sceptic. 

Parmenides  (about  518)  is  the  most  not- 
able of  the  Eleatic  philosophers.  Having  at 
first  attached  himself  to  the  Pythagoreans, 
he  derived  the  physical  part  of  his  system 
from  them;  but  it  is  to  Xenophanes  that 
Parmenides  was  indebted  for  the  theory  of 
the  One  and  the  Many, 


34 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


CHAPTER  IV- 

COSMOLOGISTS. 

Heraclitus  (the  obscure)    (about  535-475 
B.  C. )  the  founder  of  this  school,  taught  as 

follows : 

The  world  was  not  created  either  by  the 
gods  or  by  man.  It  has  always  existed 
and  will  always  exist,  like  an  eternal  fire. 
From  the  fire  evolved,  through  a  cooling 
process,  water ;  from  water,  earth ;  through 
reburning  the  earth  becomes  once  more 
water,  and  this  in  its  turn  once  again  fire ; 
there  is  an  everlasting  change.  When  fire 
transforms  itself  into  water,  and  water  into 
earth,  condensation  takes  pla(!e ;  in  the  con- 
trary process,  dissolution. 

Both  transformations  go  hand  in  hand, 
one  always  supplementing  the  other.  The 
primitive  fire  is  "Zeus.''  The  souls  of  man- 
kind and  of  animals  emanate  from  him. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


35 


In  no  part  of  the  universe  is  there  im- 
mutability; everything  changes.  To  Be 
means  to  change;  from  tliis  there  develops 
the  manifoldness  of  appearances.  In  the 
world  —  everlasting  change  —  there  exists 
perfect  harmony,  everything  being  ordained 
according  to  our  wants  by  the  orders  and 
laws  of  the  highest  Wisdom.  From  this 
Heraclitus  derives  an  ethical  religious  spec- 
ulation, and  declares  that  man  can  only  be 
happy  and  contented  when  he  subjects  him- 
self to  necessity. 

Anaxagoras  (about  499-427  B.  C.)  was  a 
pupil  of  Heraclitus.  Only  fragments  of  his 
writings  on  nature  are  still   in  existence. 

He  takes  innumerable  kinds  of  matter 
for  granted.  The  motive  power  is  Wisdom, 
which  holds  everything  in  its  hands  and 
governs  perfectly  the  past,  the  present,  and 
the  future. 

This  Wisdom  is  in  all  plants,  animals, 
and  mankind,  and  acts  as  the  living  Soul. 


36 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


CHAPTER  V. 


ATOMISTS. 


Leucippus  (about  500-400  B.  C.)  is  the 
founder  of  this  school.  He  teaches  that  all 
bodies  consist  of  innumerable  invisible  and 
indivisible  atoms,  which,  by  their  size  and 
the  way  in  which  they  are  combined,  form 
the  substance  of  bodies.     • 

Democritus  (about  460-370  B.  C),  his  dis- 
ciple, teaches  that  the  qualities  of  bodies 
are  simply  semblances.  Nothing  is  in  itself 
bitter,  sweet,  cold,  or  warm.  It  only  ap- 
pears so,  through  the  disposition  called 
ties  that  are  necessary  to  fill  up  space,  viz. : 
size,  appearance,  place,  and  movement.  All 
bodies  consist  of  simple  indivisible  atoms, 
which  are  too  small  to  be  visible,  and  which 
can  be  distinguished  only  by  their  size,  po- 
sition, etc. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


37 


These  atoms  fill  the  cosmos,  motion  being 
the  result  of  the  weight  of  matter.  The 
mass  of  atoms  has  a  downward  movement, 
the  larger  atoms  being  heavier  than  the 
smaller  ones.  They  consequently  move 
faster,  amd  through  collision  bodies  were 
formed.  Fire  also  consists  of  atoms;  they 
are  to  be  found  in  all  organic  bodies,  being 
specially  numerous  in  the  human  soul. 
Death  is  caused  by  the  escape  of  a  large 
quantity  of  these  atoms.  Atoms  also  con- 
tain feeling,  desire,  thought,  longing,  and 
pain,  the  workings  of  the  soul.  Perception 
is  caused  by  the  outflow  of  atoms  penetrat- 
ing the  sight  amd  there  encountering  sim- 
ilar atoms. 

Many  of  the  theories  of  Democritus  re- 
late to  worldly  wisdom. 

It  is  better  for  humanity  that  life  should 
offer  to  the  individual  more  pleasure  than 
sorrow,  and  he  who  desires  that  this  should 
be  so,  must  have  less  care  for  the  body  than 
for  the  soul.  Man  can  only  find  real  hap- 
piness within  himself.  It  does  not  consist 
of  pleasures  of  sense,  but  in  the  content- 
ment and  peace  of  the  heart  and  of  the  soul. 


38 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


39 


CHAPTERIVI. 

THE  SOPHISTS. 

Sophist  was  the  name  given  to  a  group 
of  men  who  lived  in  the  Fifth  Century 
B.  C.  and  who,  paid  by  the  State,  taught 
argumentation  and  oratory.  They  did  not 
aim  at  a  deep  and  thorough  knowledge,  but 
only  at  that  superficial  science  and  expert- 
ness  which  would  bring  them  influence  and 
riches.  Their  characteristic  gifts  were  elo- 
quence and  other  qualities  which  are  ne- 
cessary to  play  a  part  in  public  life.  The 
three  most  important  Sophists  were: 

Protagoras,  Gorgias,  Prodicus. 

Their  most  important  teaching  is:  that 
the  qualities  perceived  in  objects  are  not 
really  their  own,  but  only  come  to  them 
through  their  relation  to  ourselves. 

There  can  be  no  "self,"  the  only  existence 
being  on  the  part  of  a  perceiving  Subject. 


If  an  object  appears  to  be  one  thing  to  one 
person  and  something  different  to  another, 
that  object  is  what  it  appears  to  be  to  each. 
The  measure  for  all  things  is  man.  They 
transferred  this  view  into  the  moral  sphere, 
and  so  shifted  the  idea  of  good  and  evil,  or 
in  reality  uprooted  it. 

Prodicus  gave  lectures  on  the  choice  of 
conduct  in  life,  on  the  worth  and  proper 
disposition  of  wealth,  on  life  and  death. 

The  later  Sophists  were  free-thinkers 
who  undermined  law  and  morals  by  raising 
the  right  of  power  to  a  law  of  nature,  and 
by  recommending  an  inconsiderate  satisfy- 
ing of  every  desire.  Their  strength  was  not 
positive  knowledge,  nor  did  their  theories 
lead  to  any  successful  conclusions.  It  only 
consisted  in  the  art  of  being  able  to  speak 
well  and  fluently  on  a  subject  in  which 
they  were  not  well  versed. 


40 


A  li  C  of  Philosophy. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


SOCRATES,  469-399  B.  C. 


Socrates  differed  from  the  Sophists  in- 
asmuch as  he  taught  without  being  paid,  in 
casual  nuH^tings  with  his  pupils,  putting 
questions,  answering  and  unfolding  them, 
and  testing  the  results  together  with  his 
pupils. 

He  wrote  nothing  down  himself,  and  we 
know^  of  him  mainly  through  the  writings 
of  Xenophon  and  Plato. 

His  philosophy  is  purely  ethical,  the  ac- 
tions of  man  are  determined  by  good  or 
evil;  it  is  only  necessary  to  find  the  test 
stone  of  Truth.  He  started  from  the  in- 
ductive method,  i.  e.,  he  began  by  affirm- 
ing certain  facts  about  a  certain  species, 
proceeding  then,  through  contemplation,  to 
a  statement  relating  to  the  whole  species. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


41 


In  Socrates  are  to  be  seen  the  first  begin- 
nings of  Logic,  for  he  made  use  of  defini- 
tions and  proceeded  by  Induction.  He  saw 
in  it  the  only  way  of  arriving  at  virtue. 
Virtue  is  a  science ;  anyone  can  be  virtuous 
if  he  is  taught  to  be  so.  There  is  but  one 
Truth,  consequently  only  one  Virtue. 

The  task  of  "Ethics"  is  to  demonstrate 
that  Virtue  which  in  itself  contains  all 
other  virtues.  Virtue  is  identical  with  the 
useful  and  the  pleasant.  Moral  laws  are 
of  divine  origin.  One  God,  besides  whom 
none  other  exists,  is  the  originator  of  these 
laws.  God  is  an  invisible  Spirit  only  to  be 
recognized  through  his  works. 

Socrates  did  not  pray  for  specified 
things,  but  for  good  in  general.  He  was  the 
first  philosopher  who  paid  for  his  opinions 
with  his  life.  Four  schools  trace  their 
origin  back  to  Socrates;  namely,  the  Me- 
garian,  the  Cyrenaic,  the  Cynic,  and  the 
Platonic. 


42 


ABC  of  Philosoplni. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


43 


. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE  MEGARIES. 

Euclid  of  ]Mogara  was  one  of  the  most 
enthusiastic  of  Socrates'  disciples.  After 
the  death  of  his  master  he  retired  to  Me- 
gara,  where  he  founded  the  Megariam 
School. 

Euclid  tried  to  combine  the  Eleatic  con- 
ception of  the  One  and  all  and  the  Socratic 
conception  of  Good  by  defining  them  to  be 
the  same  thing.  Thus  proving  that  that 
which  is  not  "Good"  is  non-existent. 

THE  CYRENAICS. 

Aristippus,  another  of  Socrates'  disci^ 
pies,  was  the  founder  of  this  school.  Aris- 
tippus  taught  that  the  highest  aim  im  life 
is  happiness  (not  hemmed  in  by  convention- 


alities). Happiness — i.  c,  pleasure — is  en- 
n()l>led  and  idealized  enjoyment.  To  prove 
this  tlieory  it  is  necessary  to  ask  "how  in- 
tense a  certain  pleasure  is,  and  what  influ- 
ence will  it  have  witli  regard  to  the  future." 
(.'ulture  and  moderation  are  also  necessary 
to  intensify  pleasure. 


CYNICS. 

Antisthenes  (438-36(>  B.  C),  tlie  founder 
of  the  school  of  Cynics  (the  Greek  Capucin 
monks),  believed  that  he  understood  Socra- 
t(*s  most  thoroughly. 

"Poverty,  riches,  honor,  infamy,  life  and 
death,  are  perfectly  indifferent  to  the  wise. 
Virtue,  which  consists  entirely  in  renuncia- 
tion and  self-control,  suffices  for  absolute 
contentment." 

The  best  known  among  the  cynics  is 
Diogenes  (died  323  B.  C).  His  self-denial 
and  indifference  imposed  on  the  crowd;  he 
did  not  lay  any  stress  upon  knowledge  and 
research. 

The  Cynics  believed  that  the  shortest 
road  to  Wisdom  lay  in  trying  to  suppress 


44 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


A  H  C  of  Philosophy. 


45 


all  pleasure;  they  eventually  even  went 
against  the  old  religious  conceptions  and 
regulations,  such,  for  instance,  as  marriage, 
as  being  originally  in  contradiction  with 
Nature. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

PLATO  (the  broad-shouldered  one), 

427-348  B.  C. 

Plato's  writings  have  all  been  preserved. 
They  are  all  written  in  dialogues,  as  he  al- 
ways used  this  form  in  teaching.  In  form 
and  style  they  are  worthy  of  the  highest 
admiration. 

In  them  he  contiaued  the  teachings  of 
his  master,  Socrates.  Ideas  are  the  prin- 
ciples of  knowledge,  the  rules  being  our 
conceptions. 

Conceptions  alone  are  existing  and  last- 
ing, while  the  world  is  material  and  chang- 
ing. Knowledge  begins  with  the  idea  that 
many  single  things  which  are  alike  can  be 
put  together,  and  from  these  there  can  be 
deduced  a  general  result  common  to  them 


46 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


AB  C  of  Philosophy. 


47 


all.  In  tliis  way  an  idea  is  born;  this  idea 
is  eternally  unalterable,  even  if  the  cor- 
respondin<5  objects  are  variable.  Above  all 
things,  ideas  existed  in  our  Souls  before 
our  birth;  conceptions  are  ^^n  priore,''  i.  e., 
born  with  us;  not  taken  from  our  senses, 
but  created  by  reason.  The  material  per- 
ceptions only  affect  tlu^  appearance  of  con- 
ceptions which  have  lain  dormant  in  our 
reason.  Ideas  are  the  prototype  of  things, 
and  these  again  only  the  portrait  of  the 
ideas,  because  the  Creator  (Demiourgos) 
enforced  his  idea  upon  the  raw  matter. 
The  highest  conception  is  the  idea  of  good, 
and  this  is  God  himself  personified. 

As  regards  this  idea  Plato  did  not  go  any 
deeper. 

The  world  has  to  thank  its  existence  to 
the  Goodness  of  God.  It  contains  some- 
thing which  does  not  come  either  from  God 
or  from  ideas,  and  this  is  the  unlimited  and 
indeterminable  in  it. 

The  unlimited  is  the  foundation  of  the 
world,  therefore  the  world  is  not  perfect 
and  evil  is  ineradicable.  Everything  in 
the  w^orld  is  practically  ordained  and  ruled 


by  a  reasonable  principle  which  Plato  calls 
"the  soul  of  the  World." 

Everything  happens  for  certain  purposes 
which  we  cannot  always  understand.  Plato 
supposes  the  pre-existence  of  a  soul  wiiich 
dwelt  in  heaven  in  immediate  contact  with 
ideas  before  birth.  Therefore  all  knowledge 
is  a  "reminiscence"  of  that  which  has  al- 
ready been  contemplated. 

In  ethics  Plato  agi-ees  with  Socrates  that 
reasonable  Will  is  Virtue;  an  irrational  life 
is  immoral.  All  inclinations  and  actions  in 
life  are  decided  by  judgment;  all  bad  ac- 
tions are  mistakes.  No  one  commits  evil  of 
his  own  free  will,  and  virtue  accompanies 
knowledge  and  goodness.  Virtue  is  ego- 
tism; we  must  conform  to  it  for  its  own 
sake.  There  is  but  one  Virtue  which  is 
divided  into  four  cardinal  virtues:  Wis- 
dom, courage,  moderation,  and  justice.  Only 
those  who,  aiming  for  Morality,  try  to  find 
the  greatest  virtue,  are  the  true  philoso- 
phers, the  kingly  "natures,  to  whom  the  rul- 
ing of  souls  should  belong."  After  death, 
their  souls  go  to  a  place  of  recompense, 
while  the  wicked  souls  go  to  a  place  of 


48 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


punishment,  there  to  remain  a  thousand 
years  and  afterwards  to  select  a  mew  exist- 
ence. They  must  wander  through  the  bod- 
ies of  plants  and  animals  for  the  thousand 
years,  to  do  penance  for  the  wickedness  com- 
mitted. 

A  moral  life  can  only  be  taught  by  the 
State.  A  man  becomes  greater  in  the  State, 
as  it  really  is  the  individual  many  times  en- 
larged. The  aim  of  the  State  is  to  secure 
the  maximum  of  contentment  and  virtue 
in  its  subjects,  as  well  as  their  education; 
in  their  common  activity  there  must  reign 
harmony  and  order.  In  the  State  every  in- 
dividual must  sacrifice  himself  for  the  gen- 
eral good.  Personal  interests  must  give  way. 
Private  riches,  family,  up-bringing,  a«d 
career  must  be  sacrificed  to  the  State  if 
necessary. 

Only  philosophers  or  those  taught  by  phil- 
osophers should  be  at  the  head  of  the  State. 
Plato  laid  great  stress  on  the  culture  of  the 
sciences,  and  his  political  teachings  have 
given  rise  to  many  "utopias,"  even  to  the 
present  day.  His  philosophy  is  purely  es- 
thetic, his  ideals  being  parallel  to  the  ideals 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


49 


of  the  Greek  artists,  for  whom  the  ideas  of 
beauty  and  of  goodness  are  nearly  related. 

Platonism  consists  in  thinking  that  the 
true  existence  of  things  is  analogous  to  our 
highest  ideals. 

Plato  founded  an  Academy  which  con- 
tinued to  exist  long  after  his  death.  This 
was  the  cause  of  the  founding  of  many 
others. 

We  divide  them  into :  'Hhe  old/'  ^Hhe  mid- 
dle/' and  the  "new  academies/'  according 
to  their  different  teachings.  Scepticism  be- 
came the  teaching  of  the  New  School. 


50 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


ABC  of  Philosophy. 


51 


CHAPTER  X. 
ARISTOTLE  OF  STAGIRA,  385-322  B.  C. 

Aristotle's  father  was  medical  adviser  to 
King  Anigutas  of  Macedonia.  At  the  age 
of  seventeen  he  became  a  pupil  of  Plato,  and 
studied  under  him  for  twenty  years.  In  342 
B.  C.  he  became  tlie  tutor  of  Alexander, 
afterwards  the  Great,  who  was  fourteen 
years  old  at  the  time.  In  335  B.  C.  he  came 
to  Athens  and  lectured  on  Philosphy  in  the 
Lyceum.  He  died  at  Clialcis  in  Euboea 
leaving  about  a  thousand  MSS. 

Those  published  by  himself  have  been 
lost,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  fragments. 
His  greatest  merit  in  Philosophy  is  that 
he  was  the  true  founder  of  logical  science. 
He  gave  us  the  material  for  logic,  and  to 
the  present  day  hardly  anything  has  been 
added  to  it. 


His  teaching:  There  are  ten  different  ex- 
pressions for  the  Existing,  which  are  di- 
vided into  the  following  parts: 

1.  Substance,  example,  man,  horse. 

2.  Quantity,  example,  measure,  weight. 

3.  Quality,  example,  black,  soft. 

4.  Kelation,  example,  half,  larger. 

5.  Place,  example,  in  the  town. 

6.  Time,  example,  yesterday,  to-morrow. 

7.  Position,  example,  standing,  bending. 

8.  Condition,  example,  well,  poor 

9.  Action,  example,  running,  dancing. 
10.  Suffering,  example,  pain,  joy. 

These  are  the  ten  categories  which  denote 
neither  Truth  nor  Error ;  they  only  acquire 
a  real  or  an  erroneous  significance  when 
the  subject  is  united  with  the  predicate, 
viz. :  in  pronouncing  judgment  upon  things! 
The  most  important  category  is  the  sub- 
stance, as  without  it  the  others  cannot  exist. 
Deducing  one  opinion  from  many  others  we 
arrive  at  a  conclusion,  which  according  to 
the  certainty  of  the  deduction  becomes 
apodictical,  dialectical,  or  rhetorical  A 
false  conclusion  Aristotle  calls  sophism  or 
fallacy. 


i 


I 


52 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


In  his  theological  writimg  Aristotle  turns 
against  Plato's  theory  with  scathing  criti- 
cism. According  to  Aristotle,  Plato  gave 
no  explicit  reason  for  Existence.  Whea  he 
calls  Ideas  the  origin  of  things  and  only 
admits  that  objects  form  part  of  the  ideas, 
he  falls  into  empty  poetical  expression. 
Aristotle  distinguishes  in  matter  Substance 
and  Form  through  which  Substance  be- 
comes a  peculiar  example  of  its  class.  He 
adds  to  these  conceptions,  purpose,  aim,  and 
reason. 

Substance  contains  possibilities  for  every- 
thing. 

Form  makes  the  Substance  real. 

Matter  endeavors  to  appear  through  the 
Form. 

He  explains  the  imperfection  of  the  world 
by  the  struggle  of  matter  not  to  become  a 
perfect  Form. 

About  God,  Aristotle  often  contradicts 
himself.  As  the  Propeller  of  the  world  God 
exists,  and  he  is  the  Best  Substance  pos- 
sible.    His  activity  consists  of: 

Purpose.  His  mind  is  Pure  thought,  as  He 
has  Himself  as  object.     Aristotle's  concep- 


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53 


tion  of  Heaven  is  a  Special  Matter  and 
Movement  (to  which  the  Rotary  motion  be- 
longs exclusively). 

This  motion  is  the  simplest  and  the  most 
perfect,  as  it  always  returns  to  the  same 
starting-point. 

The  World  (Universe)  is  round;  the  fixed 
stars  are  attached  to  a  sphere  and  are  of 
themselves  incapable  of  motion,  but  are 
carried  on  by  the  other  forces. 

In  the  centre  is  the  Earth,  immovable. 
The  Earth's  centre  is  composed  of  hot  mol- 
tem  matter.  The  outcome  of  the  everlasting 
change  with  earthly  elements  may  be  said 
to  consist  in  comets,  winds,  earthquakes, 
and  minerals. 

From  the  elements  animal  forms  are  de- 
rived— flesh  and  bone.  Everywhere  there 
exists  Relative  purpose.  The  Purpose  rules 
the  whole  of  organic  Nature;  e.  g.:  Every 
organ  of  the  body  is  made  to  fulfil  a  certain 
function. 

The  Soul  is  the  complex  form  of  am  or- 
ganic body;  it  is  the  formal  reason  of  the 
living  body,  as  it  is  Life,  and  through  life 
the  body  exists.     There  are  five  grades  of 


54 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


55 


f! 


souls  (the  soul  as  a  life-giver)  :  Nourish- 
ment,  movement^  propagation^  striving,  feel- 
ing and  thinking. 

Compared  with  Plato,  Aristotle  gives  to 
Ethics  a  much  lower  place.  Good  consists 
of  perfect  happiness,  and  this  again  exists 
for  every  individual  in  living  the  life  which 
pleases  himself.  The  unhindered  and  per- 
fect activity  of  a  man's  powers  is  the  great- 
est good. 

The  Best  in  man  is  that  perfect  achieve- 
ment of  the  work  which  is  given  him  as  a 
reasonable  individual ;  to  him  alone  belongs 
the  activity  of  reason  (or  mind). 

Everyone  is  predisposed  to  Virtue.  Real 
moral  actions  are  the  right  things  to  do. 
Courage  is  the  true  medium  between  cowar- 
dice and  recklessness. 

Justice  is  the  most  perfect  virtue,  because 
the  individual  must  forget  Self  and  con- 
sider others.  To  Aristotle  knowledge  and 
understanding  are  higher  than  the  eternal 
virtues  because  they  contain  Truth,  the 
greatest  of  all  virtues;  and  since  the  great- 
est happiness  lies  in  purely  mental  activity, 
the    activity    of    God    consists    im    Pure 


Thought,  The  measure  of  human  virtue  is 
the  State.  Tlie  foundation  is  the  Family. 
All  governments  are  good  when  they  aim 
at  the  general  good ;  all  those  are  bad  which 
keep  in  view  only  the  interests  of  the  rulers. 

Good  Governments  are  a  Monarchy,  or  an 
Aristocracy;  bad  Governments  are  a  Tyr- 
anny or  a  Democracy. 

Education  is  the  duty  of  the  State  and 
must  be  alike  for  its  subjects. 

What  Aristotle  did  for  all  branches  of 
Philosophy  stands  unique  in  the  history  of 
science.  He  not  only  touched  upon  every 
subject,  but  also  matured  and  completed 
every  one  of  the  branches  which  he  under- 
took. His  ideas  are  gigantic;  in  every 
branch  of  science  there  is  perfect  equality. 

His  philosophy  was  renowned,  but  found 
few  disciples  and  little  appreciation.  In  all 
his  mental  workings  he  tries  to  make  use  of 
all  the  experience  which  he  acquired  during 
his  life.  He  has  been  called  the  greatest 
"Polyhistor"  of  ancient  times,  because  no 
one  has  ever  been  able  to  go  so  deeply  into 
all  branches  of  science. 


if 


56 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


PART  11. 
CHAPTER   XI. 

PHILOSOPHY  AFTER  ARISTOTLE. 

STOICS. 

Zeno  (died  about  264  B.  C.)  founded  a 
school  in  the  Stoa  (the  "Painted  Porch"  in 
the  Agora  at  Athens).  He  was  a  pupil  of 
the  cynic  Crates  and  taught  for  about  fifty 
years,  dying  by  starving  himself  to  death. 

Of  the  later  stoics  the  most  important 
are  Panetius,  PosidamiuSy  Seneca  (the 
tutor  of  Nero),  Epictetus  (a  slave  of  Nero) 
who  was  freed  and  taught  Philosophy,  and 
lastly  the  Emperor  Marcus  Aurelius  An- 
toninus, 

The  greatest  work  of  the  Stoic  school  con- 
sists in  the  basing  of  Morals  on  an  inde- 
pendent discipline. 


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57 


In  sharp  contrast  to  the  older  code  of 
morals,  it  built  up  on  the  the  old  system  a 
new,  independent,  and  worthier  morality. 
With  the  Stoics,  actions,  wisdom,  and  virtue 
are  one.  All  reason,  all  virtue,  are  founded 
on  understanding,  which  is  not  only  pure 
theory  but  which  necessitates  a  penetrating 
personality. 

Philosophy,  which  to  the  Stoics  is  iden- 
tical with  virtue,  must  rule  life.  We  must 
not  grieve  over  the  decrees  of  fate  or  over 
the  sorrows  of  a  friend,  but  must  try  to 
help  immediately  by  actions  instead  of  mere 
sympathy  with  their  sorrow.  We  are  here 
not  to  pity,  but  to  help  with  all  the  strength 
of  our  personality.  Man  must  rule  the 
world  with  all  its  unhappiness  and  imper- 
fections, not  so  that  he  may  become  ruler  of 
the  world,  but  that  he  may  be  independent 
of  it.  Not  the  deeds,  but  the  intentioms,  are 
good  or  evil.  Moral  good  is  placed  by  the 
Stoics  on  a  higher  basis  than  any  other  vir- 
tue. There  is  no  compromise  between  good 
and  evil. 

Marcus  Aurelius  especially  emphasizes 
the  importance  of     brotherly  ties  between 


f 


I 


58 


AB  C  of  Philosophy, 


all  nations.  It  is  he  who  first  founded  the 
idea  of  love  of  humanity.  The  world  is  the 
general  Fatherland  of  all  nations;  as  chil- 
dren of  one  father,  the  different  nations 
should  help  and  love  one  another. 

The  philosophy  of  the  Stoics  had  great 
influence  on  social  life  and  in  humanizing 
the  lowest  classes  (the  slaves  were  treated 
better,  the  poor  better  cared  for,  and  govern- 
ment hospitals  date  from  this  period),  and 
the  foundation  was  laid  for  the  political 
rights  of  the  people. 

The  teachings  of  the  Stoa  are  the  oldest 
form  of  cosmopolitanism. 


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59 


CHAPTER  XIL 
EPICUREANS. 

Founded  by 

Epicurus  (345-275  B.  C).  His  most  im- 
portant disciple  was  the  Roman  poet  Lucre- 
tius (90-55  B.  C). 

The  Epicureans  contemplate  life  from  its 
practical  side.  Only  those  things  are 
worth  aiming  at,  which  bring  forth  in  us 
feelings  of  pleasure,  and  contentment. 

Philosophy  has  to  find  out  how  we  can  ac- 
quire the  greatest  happiness,  not  blindly 
but  with  an  eye  to  the  consequences;  man 
must  strive  not  directly  for  the  actual 
pleasure,  but  to  escape  pain  and  sorrow. 

The  Epicurean  conception  of  life  does  not 
occupy  itself  with  the  origin  of  the  Uni- 
verse, but  tries  to  eliminate  all  hindrances 


I 


60 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


to  the  comfort  of  life.  Life  after  death  is 
an  absolute  myth,  as  is  also  the  fear  of 
death. 

Whether  gods  exist  or  not  is  a  matter  of 
absolute  indifference.  It  is  sufficieBt  for  us 
to  know  that  they  do  not  trouble  themselves 
about  us;  the  Epicureans  try  to  free  the  im- 
dividual  from  wickedness. 

The  State  does  not  concern  them  as  long 
as  it  does  its  duty  in  protecting  the  individ- 
ual. 

The  institution  of  marriage  is  worthless. 
Free  intercourse,  such  as  friemdship  and 
free  love,  ought  to  be  encouraged.  The  wise 
live  so  that  they  feel  themselves  gods  among 
the  people.  Epicurus  tried  to  ennoble  the 
conceptions  of  pleasure,  but  knew  nothing 
of  a  higher  destiny. 


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61 


Ml 

m 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


SCEPTICS. 

The  founder  was 

Pyrrho  of  Elis  (360-270  B.  C),  and  his 
disciple  was  Timon  (230  B.  C). 

While  comparing  earlier  philosophical 
schools,  Pyrrho  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
Sophistry  was  worthless.  As  nothing  is 
in  itself  beautiful,  ugly,  good,  or  evil,  so 
there  exists  no  real  Truth.  Only  through 
subjective  opinion,  habit,  and  custom  do 
things  acquire  their  qualities;  in  them- 
selves they  are  nothing.  We  may  not  af- 
firm anything,  we  can  only  say  it  appears 
so. 

The  wise  man  must  not  judge;  hereby  he 
arrives  at  contentment,  and  nothing  to  him 
seems  absolutely  worth  having,  as  all  worth 


i 
f 


G2 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


is  relative.  Of  the  latter  sceptics  the  best 
known  is  the  doctor : 

Sextus  Empirictis  (about  200  A.  D.). 

He  disbelieves  every  science  and  mental 
and  material  understanding.  According 
to  him  man  should  be  led  in  practical  life 
by  the  general  rules  which  have  come  into 
practice  through  the  observation  of  the  con- 
tinuity of  appearances.  He  must  not  allow 
himself  to  believe  in  the  certainty  of  such 
rules  beyond  their  practical  application. 

The  sceptics  were  of  little  value,  as  they 
only  undermined  dogmatism  by  their  ever- 
lasting doubt  and  so  contributed  to  the 
founding  of  new  systems. 


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63 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
MYSTICS. 

The  Mystics  wanted  to  found  Philosophy 
on  the  basis  of  historical  religion. 

Philo  of  Alexandria  (30  B.  C.-50  A.  D.),  a 
Jew,  amalgamated  Platonism  with  the  Mo- 
saic religion,  by  allegorical  interpretations 
of  the  Old  Testament  and  by  raising  the 
Jewish  conceptions  to  a  higher  sphere.  God 
is  invisible;  between  God  and  the  world 
there  exists  a  Central  Being  called  Logos 
(the  word  of  God). 

This  Logos  is  the  eldest  son  of  God,  the 
World  the  youngest.  Greatest  happiness 
is  the  ecstasy  in  the  contemplation  of  God, 
who  is  omnipresent,  everywhere  and  no- 
where. His  strength  permeates  the  world. 
He  did  not  create  the  world  from  nothing, 
but  from  pre-existing  matter. 


r    I 


64 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


PART  III. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

NEO-PLATONISM. 

Founded  by 

Saccas  (355  A.  D.),  who  places  the  teach- 
iDgs  of  the  heathen  philosophers  as  a  barrier 
against  Christianity.     His  disciple: 

Plotinus  (205-270  A.  D.),  tries  through 
brooding  over  the  Divine  and  human  na- 
ture to  arrive  at  some  definite  conclusion, 
and  develops  within  himself  the  philosophi- 
cal mysticism  of  antiquity. 

His  teaching:  The  existence  of  the 
world  is  nothing  but  the  everlasting  over- 
flow of  the  bouBty  of  the  Creator.  Reason, 
the  soul  of  the  world,  the  strength  of  na- 
ture; everything,  in  fact,  owes  its  existence 


A  B  G  of  Philosophy, 


65 


to  this  overflow.  Nature  lives.  Heaven  and 
the  siars  also  have  souls. 

The  soul  of  humanity  came  forth  out  of 
pre-existence,  enveloped  itself  in  an  earthly 
body  and  fights  for  life  after  death  and  soul- 
wandering. 

Proclos  (412-485  A.  D.)  was  the  last  who 
clung  to  the  decadent  pagaas;  persecuted 
and  looked  down  upon,  he  still  continued  to 
pray  to  his  gods.  He  was  exceedingly 
learned,  perfect  in  his  mode  of  life,  and 
jealous  for  the  old  traditions. 

This  Neo-Platonism  spread  as  far  as  the 
modern  Greek  language.  The  Athenian 
school  of  Neo-Platonism  continued  to  exist 
until  529  A.  D.  In  this  year  the  edict  of 
Justinian  forbade  philosophical  teaching 
and  here  ends  the  history  of  Greek  Phi- 
losophy. 


66 


ABC  of  Philosophy. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


67 


PART  IV. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
CHRISTIAN  PHILOSOPHY. 

Greek  philosophy  in  its  later  develop- 
ments shows  an  inclination  to  that  concep- 
tion which  in  a  fantastic  and  mystical  way 
recognizes  the  principles  of  existence  in  a 
single  divine  Creator. 

This  can  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  at 
that  time  all  moral  and  political  ties  were 
loosened,  and  a  dissolving  process  took 
place.  The  best  thinkers  turned  from  the 
outer  world  and  communed  with  them- 
selves. 

A  religious  streak  entered  philosophy,  the 
beginning  of  which  we  find  in  the 


GNOSTICS. 

Gnosis  means  accepting  the  Gospels  by  in- 
tellectual comprehension  rather  than  by  a 
blind  act  of  faith.  Gnostics  were  those 
who  not  only  believed  but  also  wanted  to 
found  the  Faith  on  a  scientific  basis. 

The  best  known  are : 

Basilides  (100-150  A.  D.). 

Clement  of  Alexandria  (150-211  A.  D.). 

Origines  (185-254  A.  D.). 


'm 


iKi 


.;? 


f  !"  ! 


i 

';?« 


68 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

SCHOLASTICS. 

The  Scholastics  try  to  unite  Faith  and 
Science,  inasmuch  as  they  try  to  systema- 
tize, to  comprehend,  and  to  demonstrate 
Theology  according  to  ancient  Philosophy. 

Anselm,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  (1033- 
1109  A.  D.),  who,  like  Plato,  affirms  that 
reality  consists  of  ideas,  and  that  these  ex- 
isted before  anything  else. 

From  this  theory  spring  two  systems: 
Realism  {An^lm  theorj) ,  Nominalism  (the 
idea  is  but  a  name). 

Ahelard  (1079-1143  A.  D.).  He  did  not 
set  aside  faith  nor  the  authority  of  the 
Church,  but  he  only  placed  them  in  the 
background,  and  tried  to  understand  and 
investigate  everything.  He  insisted  on  not 
making  any  difference  between  the  Chris- 


i# 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


69 


tian  and  the  pagan  religions,  and  so  came 
into  conflict  with  the  Church. 

Petrus  Lombardus  (died  1160  A.  D.), 
studied  first  in  Bologna  and  then  in  Paris, 
where  he  settled,  becoming  not  only  one  of 
the  most  famous  teachers  of  Theology,  but 
also  Bishop  of  Paris  in  1159.  His  great 
work  is  known  as  "Sentiarum  libri  qua- 
tuor." 

Dogmatics,  in  this  work,  appear  for  the 
first  time  as  a  consequent  systematic  en- 
tirety. The  contents  are  the  theorems  of 
the  Fathers  of  the  Church,  which  through 
refutation  of  the  different  objections  be- 
comes scientifically  based. 

These  "Sentences"  became  so  famous  that 
not  only  was  Lombardus  called  "Magister 
Sententiarum,"  but  they  also  became  for 
centuries  the  foundation  of  all  theological 
studies. 

Albertus  Magnus  (1193-1280  A.  D.).  To 
him  the  teachings  of  Aristotle  are  the  fun- 
damental notions  of  a  philosophical  creed. 
Philosophy  is  to  Theology  as  science  is  to 
the  Kingdom  of  Gk)d. 


if' 


i  'Ti 
I  "5 


li 


■^IfT'! 


Ill 


70 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


Both  originate  from  Godly  understand- 
ing. The  revelation  of  God  is  apparent  in 
two  ways.  Reason  and  Supernatural  En- 
lightenment, 

From  Reason  the  philosopher  takes  his 
matter,  while  the  theologian  bases  his  upoB 
Supernaturalism ;  between  them  there  must 
exist  no  contradiction;  the  first  being  less 
important  than  the  second. 

Thomas  Aquinas  (1225-1325  A.  D.),  the 
disciple  of  Albertus  Magnus,  continues  to 
develop  this  idea. 

In  contrast  to  the  Scholastics  there  arose 
the  mystical  speculators,  who,  although 
they  threw  some  fresh  light  upon  their  sub- 
ject, also  led  the  way  to  many  erroneous 
ideas.  (Eckart,  Tauler  Suso.) 


BOOK  II, 


m 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


78 


BOOK  11. 


TRANSITION  PERIOD. 


CHAPTER  I. 


RENAISSANCE. 


Tlie  second  half  of  the  15th  Century  and 
the  beginning  of  the  16th  were  for  Europe 
a  period  of  transition    (Renaissance). 

In  philosophy  this  period  endeavors  to 
give  to  the  Scholastics  new  principles. 

A  prominent  and  picturesque  figure  of 
the  period  shines  Giordano  Bruno  from 
Nola  (1550-1600  A.  D.).  After  an  unhappy 
life  of  hardships  in  Gteneva,  Paris,  and  Lon- 
don, he  was  imprisoned  in  Venice  by  the 
Inquisition  in  1592  and  burnt  in  Rome  in 
1600.     His  principal  work,   "Delia   Causa 


74 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


Principio  et  Uno/^  renews  a  poetic  panthe- 
ism. There  are  two  principal  causes,  ma^ 
tcr  and  form,  of  which  the  former  is  eter- 
nal; it  is  realized  by  form,  which,  however, 
appertains  to  it.  All  forms  are  cast  in  one 
original  form,  and  this  is  the  Soul  of  the 
world.  It  enfolds  itself  into  the  Universe. 
All  things  are  but  one  substance,  which 
always  remains  the  same.  Above  the  world 
stands  God,  the  inexpressible  and  incom- 
prehensible One,  who  is  the  Founder  of  all 
things,  and  to  whom  the  Soul  of  the  World 
is  but  a  shadow.  Philosophy  canaot  raise 
itself  to  the  level  of  His  Knowledge.  Birth 
is  but  the  extension  of  the  substance  from 
its  centre.  The  soul  is  a  monad,  one  of 
those  innumerable  appearances  of  form. 
After  death  it  returns  to  its  centre,  but  no 
monad  dies,  as  nothing  in  nature  is  lost, 
and  everything  is  in  a  continual  state  of 
transformation. 

Michel  de  Montaigne  (1533-1652)  was 
also  a  renovator  of  ancient  conceptions.  He 
was  neither  a  scholar  nor  a  philosopher,  but 
his  essays  are  interesting  and  worthy  of 
being  read.     He  treats  of  all  life's  ques- 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


75 


tions  with  the  reasoning  of  a  cultivated 
man  of  the  world. 

Reason  is  a  weak  and  poor  thing;  to 
claim  to  have  positive  knowledge  is  arro- 
gance, because  we  cannot  prove  the  con- 
formity of  our  conceptions. 

To  prove  this  we  should  possess  a  know- 
ledge of  things  independent  of  any  illusions 
of  the  senses,  which  is  impossible. 

Man  boasts  of  his  freedom,  but  the  proof 
that  he  really  is  free  is  trifling. 

Jacob  Behmen,  a  shoemaker  (a  fact  that 
would  seem  to  prove  that  the  desire  for 
knowledge  and  new  conceptions  had  per- 
meated all  classes),  was  a  Christian  scholar, 
who  absorbed  himself  in  the  Bible  and  in  a 
few  mystical  writings,  and  then  published 
a  book  of  his  own  called  "Aurora,"  or  the 
Dawn.  He  was  persecuted  and  forbidden 
to  write,  by  the  Church. 


76 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


CHAPTER  11. 
THE  MODERN  ERA  IN  PHILOSOPHY. 

Begins  with 

Lord  Bacon  (15611626),  Lord  High 
Chancellor  of  James  I.  Among  his  chief 
works  are  "The  Advancement  of  Learning," 
"De  Dignitate  et  augmentes  scientiarum," 
and  the  "Novum  Organum.'' 

In  the  last  he  endeavors  to  renovate  sci- 
ence ;  and  for  this  purpose  he  made  a  genea- 
logical tree  of  science.  There  are  four  dif- 
ferent falsifications  of  the  conceptions  of 
Mature.  To  apply  the  inductive  method  to 
the  sciences  we  must  trace  back  our  ex- 
perience to  natural  philosophy  and  clean 
the  senses  from  all  idols,  or  in  other  words, 
we  must  get  over  all  preconceived  opinions, 
traditions,  fallacious  illusions,  and  concep- 


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77 


tions.  Man  is  but  a  link  of  the  great  All. 
This  great  All,  so  Bacon  claims,  is  Nature, 
in  which  all  reality  is  contained;  all  our 
conceptions  are  derived  from  this.  Man 
must  once  again  have  confidence  in  his 
power  of  comprehension;  gifts  which  in 
themselves  are  small  and  worthless  can  be- 
come great  when  used  ia  an  orderly  and 
right  manner. 

To  Bacon  the  idea  of  the  workings  of 
the  science  of  Nature  prevails  above  all 
other  conceptions  of  life.  It  is  to  him  that 
we  mostly  owe  independent  and  individual 
experimenting  in  science.  He  is  easily  un- 
derstood and  interesting;  examples  and 
metaphors  have  greatly  helped  in  the 
change  of  the  mode  of  thought  which  took 
place  during  this  period.  His  researches 
had  no  relation  to  religion,  as  religion  does 
not  allow  any  other  but  a  religious  point  of 
view.  His  principal  merit  can  be  attributed 
to  the  strength  and  clearness  of  scientific- 
ally formulated  aims,  which  he  gave  to  phi- 
losophy. 

Thomas  Hobbes  (1588-1679)  was  at  one 
time  amanuemsis  to  Lord  Bacon.    He  was 


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condemned  by  the  Clergy  because  of  the 
atheistic  tendency  of  his  teaching.  He  de- 
mands absolute  separation  of  Religion  and 
I^liilosophy.  He  distinguishes  natural  and 
artificial  bodies,  through  which  his  philoso- 
phy divides  itself  into  a  natural  philosophy, 
and  a  philosophy  of  Government.  In  his 
ideas  on  Ethics  and  Politics,  he  writes  the 
celebrated  saying:  Humanity  found  itself 
at  war  with  Nature  all  against  all,  for  the 
first  law  of  nature  is  self-preservation. 
Every  man  has  the  right  to  satisfy  egotism. 
To  end  this  everlasting  war  a  treaty  was 
agreed  upon,  and  out  of  this  arose  the  mod- 
ern State,  which  has  become  the  arbitrary 
product  of  mankind.  Laws  are  made  to  ter- 
rorize mankind;  what  the  State  decrees  to 
be  good,  is  good.  The  ruler  should  be  able 
to  dispose  of  the  possessions  and  activities 
of  the  subject. 


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79 


CHAPTER  III. 
RATIONALISM. 

Rene  Descartes  (Latinized  Carthesius) 
(1596-1650).  Among  his  works  are  ^^Dis- 
cours  de  la  Methode/'  ''Meditationes  de 
Prima  Philosophia/'  ''Principia  Philoso- 
phiae,''  He  was  also  famous  as  a  practical 
mathematician  and  physicist.  It  was  Des- 
cartes who  founded  analytical  geometry; 
and  hi  also  discovered  many  important  laws 
of  Optics. 

He  begins  with  the  ground  of  doubt, 
which  he  derives  from  the  illusion  of  the 
senses. 

That  he,  the  doubter,  exists,  he  doubts 
not,  and  from  this  he  derives  his  first  af- 
firmation: Cogito,  ergo  sum,  (Je  pense, 
done  j'existe;  I  think,  therefore  I  exist.) 

This  sentence  is  the  criterion  with  which 
he  sets  to  work  at  conceptions.     He  dis- 


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tinguishes  inborn,  acquired,  and  self-made 
conceptions  (those  which  come  from  the 
soul),  and  fantastic  perceptions  of  the 
senses. 

The  clearest  conception  is  the  idea  of  God 
as  this  idea  is  our  original  property,  i,  e., 
inborn.  That  God  exists  is  not  difficult  to 
affirm,  as  it  is  proved  by  reality. 

To  the  Being  of  God  belongs  Truth; 
hence  everything  that  one  clearly  acknow- 
ledges can  confidently  be  taken  for  grant- 
ed; therefore  bodies  are  real,  and  only  the 
qualities  are  of  a  subjective  nature.  The 
nature  of  bodies  consists  in  extension,  the 
primary  cause  of  this  movement  being  God. 
During  creation  God  gave  to  Nature  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  tranquility  and  movement. 

The  nature  of  the  Soul  consists  of 
thought,  without  which  the  Soul  cannot 
exist,  and  which  is  not  even  interrupted  by 
sle^p.  Descartes  cannot  explain  how  the 
body  and  the  soul  influence  each  other;  Grod 
created  both  substances  and  gave  to  them 
an  inner  communion,  so  that  they  influence 
one  another.  Through  the  pineal  gland  the 
soul  governs  the  movements  of  the  body. 


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The  Cartesian  did  not  occupy  himself 
much  Avith  Morality.  To  him  virtue  is  that 
power  and  will  of  our  Soul  which  makes  us 
do  that  which  we  think.  Everything  de- 
pends upon  our  personal  approving  of 
things.  The  human  Will  is  free,  and  can 
affirm  and  deny  at  pleasure;  judgment  is 
also  a  matter  of  will,  but  the  blame  of  an 
erroneous  judgment  reverts  to  oneself. 
Our  Reason  is  limited,  but  in  contrast  our 
^^lU  is  great.  An  erroneous  judgment  is 
carelessness,  for  which  we  can  neither  make 
our  God  nor  our  nature  responsible.  In 
our  Will  lies  the  possibility  of  erring,  and 
this  is  to  be  avoided.  Among  the  pupils 
of  Descartes  may  be  mentioned  Nicolas 
Malebranche  (1638-1715),  a  Catholic  priest. 
He  enlarged  upon  the  teachings  of  Des- 
cartes, and  the  absolute  separation  of  body 
and  soul.  They  cannot  influence  one  an- 
other, and  when  we  think  we  feel  an  influ- 
ence, it  is  not  direct,  but  God  intervenes 
and  accomplishes  it. 

God  is  not  always  active,  but  His  laws 
become  effectual  when  the  conditions  are 
ready.     God,  as  the  Creator  of  laws   (Na- 


I 


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ture),  is  the  Creator  of  all  bodily  and  men- 
tal phenomena.  Everything  that  happens 
is  God^s  doing.  Through  Him  Malebranche 
endeavors  to  explain  the  whole  mechanism 
of  the  world.  In  morals  Malebranche  takes 
a  high  place;  according  to  him  virtue  con- 
sists of  the  moral  conception  and  fulfilment 
of  our  duties.  In  acting,  we  must  only  obey 
duty;  therefore  he  is  one  of  the  precursors 
of  Immanuel  Kant. 


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83 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CONTINUATION  OF  THE 
CARTESIAN  SCHOOL. 

Spinoza  (1632-1677).  Benedictus  (Ba- 
ruch)  de  Spinoza  was  one  of  the  greatest 
thinkers  that  the  world  has  seea.  He  had 
great  influence  upon  modern  thought. 

His  character  was  philanthropic  and 
sober;  he  devoted  himself  to  philosophy, 
hoping  that  it  would  fill  his  life.  After  ex- 
periencing that  the  aims  after  which  hu- 
manity strive  are  worthless  and  vain,  he 
made  up  his  mind  to  seek  for  something 
which  would  be  of  real  value  and  in  which 
the  soul  could  have  a  part,  a  Something 
which  could  give  the  greatest  happiness. 

The  greatest  happiness  can  only  be  at- 
tained by  the  highest  perfection;  all  sci- 


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ences  are  but  means  to  this  end.  In  the 
perfection  of  the  powers  of  understanding 
consists  the  happiness  of  mankind. 

Spinoza  published  two  works,  one  of 
which  was  an  exposition  of  a  Cartesian 
Work.  Only  after  his  death  did  his  most 
important  work,  ^^Ethica  Ordine  Geometri- 
CO  demonstratay'^  appear. 

Spinoza-s  theory  is  that  substance  is  the 
foundation  of  all  things,  everlasting,  and 
although  all  things  depend  upon  it,  it  is  in 
itself  independent. 

Substance  and  cause  are  identical.  The 
cause  of  all  things  is  to  be  called  God ;  God, 
not  a  personal  Spirit,  but  the  Reality  of  all 
things.  He  is  the  evolving  Nature,  not  the 
transcendental  Creator.  He  is  the  only  Na- 
ture identical  with  substance.  Substance 
is  not  only  active  through  the  mere  fact  of 
its  existence,  but  also  by  its  attributes. 
These  are  the  realities  which  reason  recog- 
nizes in  substance:  A  substance  has  as 
many  attributes  in  proportion  to  the 
amount  of  reality  it  possesses.  God  the 
Eternal  Substance,  whose  reality  is  infinite, 
possesses  the  greatest  number  of  attributes. 


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85 


Of  these  innumerable  qualities,  man  only 
recognizes  those  which  he  feels  within  him- 
self. 

Thought  and  Extension:  God  is  a  think- 
ing and  an  extending  Being.  In  this  theory 
Spinoza  absolutely  opposes  the  theories  of 
Descartes,  as  extension  contains  divisibility, 
which  is  imperfect,  and  which,  therefore, 
God  cannot  possess. 

We  have  three  different  kinds  of  under- 
standing : 

The  Imaginative  perceptions. 
Reason. 

Immediate  conceptions. 

In  the  moral  contemplation  of  mankind 
Spinoza  begins  with  the  material  side.  Man 
is  a  machine,  in  which  everything  occurs 
(through  necessity) ;  he  is  a  sum  of  emo- 
tions through  which  he  is  made  independent 
of  all  other  causes.  One  emotion  can  only 
be  effaced  by  another. 

The  strongest  of  all  is  Self-preservation. 
Man  can  rid  himself  of  all  unpleasant  emo- 
tions by  Reason.  As  soon  as  he  can  make 
for  himself  an  absolutely  plain  and  clear 
idea  of  a  passion  it  no  longer  is  a  passion. 


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A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


The  more  independent  our  conceptions  of 
outward  expressions  are,  the  stronger  is 
our  Spirit.  It  must  elevate  our  souls,  as  it 
delivers  us  from  all  passions. 

Spinoza  by  his  definitions  of  the  emotions 
did  a  great  service  to  physiology.  His  moral 
teachings  are  intellectual,  viz.:  virtue  de- 
pends on  understanding  (Socrates),  and  is 
naturalistic,  i.  e,,  a  necessary  consequence 
of  human  nature,  a  product  of  circum- 
stances. Good  and  evil  are  but  relative 
conceptions.  Not  a  reality  in  the  objects 
themselves,  but  only  affecting  them  through 
comparison.  Good  is  that  which  makes  us 
perfect.  The  highest  virtue  is  to  acknowl- 
edge and  to  love  God;  not  the  recompense, 
but  virtue  for  itself,  is  complete  happiness. 

Spinoza's  greatness  consists  in  the  im- 
mense energy  with  which  he  weaves  the 
manifold  threads  of  his  philosophical  the- 
ory into  a  tissue  and  in  strict  accuracy. 


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87 


CHAPTER  V. 


PHILOSOPHY  IN  ENGLAND. 

John  Locke  was  born  at  Wrington,  near 
Bristol,  in  1632,  and  died  in  1714.  He 
studied  medicine,  literature,  and  the  Car- 
tesian philosophy  at  Christ  Church,  Ox- 
ford. 

Having  been  a  great  friend  of  the  first 
Earl  of  Shaftesbury  (grandfather  of  the 
philosopher),  he  had  much  influence  on  the 
education  of  the  EarPs  grandchild. 

When  Shaftesbury  fell  out  with  James 
II  and  had  to  flee  the  country,  Locke  fol- 
lowed him.  On  the  accession  of  William 
of  Orange,  he  became  Commissioner  of  Ap- 
peals. 

Already  in  1667  Locke  had  written  his 
first  "Letter  concerning  Toleration";  this 
was  followed  in  1690  by  the  Second  Letter 


nil 


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80 


concerning  Toleration,  and  in  1692  by  a 
third.  Death  overtook  him  while  he  was 
finishing  the  fourth. 

In  these  four  letters,  Locke  declares  that 
unrestricted  and  equal  tolerance  of  all  opin- 
ions and  every  religion  is  a  necessary  right. 

Not  only  should  members  of  all  Chria- 
tian  sects  freely  exercise  their  rights,  but 
the  profession  even  of  the  Jewish,  Moham- 
medan, or  any  Pagan  religion  should  not 
expose  a  man  to  the  loss  of  the  rights  of 
citizenship. 

Through  these  letters  Locke  takes  a  fore- 
most place  among  the  religious  free  think- 
ers of  England. 

What  has  won  a  name  for  him  in  the 
history  of  Philosophy  is  the  "Essay  con- 
cerning Human  Understanding"  (1689- 
1690),  which  makes  him  a  precursor  of  Im- 
manuel  Kant.  It  also  started  the  contro- 
versy between  the  Empirical  system  of  the 
eighteenth  century  in  England,  Germany, 
and  France,  and  the  Aristotelian  Scholas- 
ticiBm  of  the  Middle  Ages  and  the  Gar- 
tesianism  of  his  own  times,  which  ended  in 
the  Victory  of  Empiricism. 


Among  other  things,  Locke  also  wrote 
"Thoughts  on  Education."  He  died  at 
Gates  (Essex),  where  Lady  Masham  was 
educating  her  son  according  to  his  ideas. 

Sir  Isaac  Newton  (1643-1727),  was  a  fa- 
mous natural  philosopher.  He  attended  a 
grammar  school  at  Grantham,  matriculat- 
ed at  Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  1661,  and 
became  B.A.  ia  1665.  He  was  absent  from 
Cambridge  during  the  plague  in  1665-66. 
He  discovered  the  "binomial  theorem," 
the  differential  Calculus  and  the  integral 
Calculus,  computed  the  art  of  Hyperbola, 
and  conceived  the  idea  of  universal  gravi- 
tation. In  other  words,  Newton  is  the 
founder  of  physical  astronomy.  Following 
Descartes  and  Keppler,  he  laid  down  the 
axiom  of  the  binomial  theorem ;  and  he  was 
really  one  of  the  most  admired  mathemati- 
cal geniuses  of  his  time. 

In  1667  he  became  fellow  of  Trinity  Col- 
lege, and  turned  his  attention  to  optics  and 
made  a  reflecting  telescope.  He  became 
Lucasian  professor  in  1669.  His  second  re- 
flecting telescope  was  sent  to  the  Royal  So- 


90 


ABC  of  Philosophy. 


ciety  in  1671.    He  was  made  F.R.S.  in  1672, 
and  became  President  in  1705. 

The  idea  of  universal  gravitation  had  pre- 
sented itself  to  his  mind  in  1665  through 
the  falling  of  an  apple.     In  1680  he  discov- 
ered how  to  calculate  the  orbit  of  a  body 
moving  under  the  influence  of     a  central 
force,  but  published  no  account  of  these  dis- 
coveries, as  he  was  unable  to  solve  the  ques- 
tion of  the  mutual  attraction  of  two  spheres 
which  he  gives  us  in  his  first  two  books,  "De 
motu,"  and  "Philosophic  naturalis,  Prin- 
cipia    Mathematica."      Other   great    works 
are :  "Optics,  or  a  Treatise  of  the  reflexions, 
refractions  and  inflections,  and  colours  of 
light,'^  a  discourse  on  the  analysis  of  White 
sunlight  into  various  colored  rays  through 
the  prism;  "Arithmetica  Universalis;"  and 
the  "Analysis  per  acquatones  Numero  ter- 
minorum  infinitas." 

These  works  revolutionized  all  the  ex- 
isting theories  of  his  time. 

Anthony  Ashley  Cooper,  Srd  Earl  of 
Shaftesbury  (born  in  London  in  1671,  died 
in  Naples  1713),  was  brought  up  according 
to  the  ideas  of  John  Locke.    When  nineteen 


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91 


years  of  age,  he  traveled  on  the  Continent, 
especially  in  Holland  and  Italy.  In  Holland 
he  made  the  acquaintance  of  Bayle  (the 
well-known  philosopher). 

^^The  Letters  to  a  Young  Man  at  the  Uni- 
versity/' written  in  the  years  1706-10,  only 
appeared  after  his  death  in  1713.  In  1711 
he  published  a  collection  of  liis  writings 
under  the  title  of  "Characteristics  of  Men, 
Manners,  Opinions  and  Times." 

Shaftesbury  distinguishes  three  kinds  of 
affections:  1.  Natural  or  brotherly  affec- 
tions, which  aim  at  the  general  good,  and 
which  drive  us  sometimes  even  to  sacrifice. 
2.  What  Shaftesbury  calls  Self-affection, 
that  is,  desire  for  our  personal  good.  3. 
Those  unnatural  affections  which  lead 
neither  to  public  nor  to  private  good. 

Only  through  Piety  can  absolute  Virtue 
be  reached,  although  we  must  in  ourselves 
be  good  to  understand  even  in  the  smallest 
degree  the  goodness  of  God.  Virtue  must 
be  founded  absolutely  on  itself;  no  occur- 
rences, habit,  fantasy,  or  will-power,  mot 
even  God,  can  give  it  to  us. 


m 


]r  m 


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A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


Shaftesbury's  writings  yrcatlj  influenced 
some  of  the  best-known  thinkers  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  among  whom  were  Vol- 
taire, Diderot,  Leibnitz,  and  Herder. 

David  Hume   (bom  in  Ediaburgh  1711 
died  1776).     He  studied  Jurisprudence  at 
the  Edinburgh  University.    In  1734  he  went 
to  France,  where  he  stayed  eight  years,  and 
brought  back  his  first  book,  "Treatise  upon 
Human   Nature."     He    then  published    in 
1741  his  Essays :  Moral,  Political,  and  Ut- 
erary,  followed  by  "A  Dissertation  on  the 
Passions,"  "An  Inquiry  concerning  the  Prin- 
ciples of  Morals."    The  third  volume  con- 
sisted of  a  remodelling  of  his  first  treatise, 
while  a  fourth  volume,  "The  Natural  His- 
tory of  Religion,"  terminated  his  collection 
of  essays. 

In  1751,  having  returned  to  Edinburgh 
after  a  few  years  of  travel  on  the  Continent 
as  Secretary  to  Gen.  Sinclair,  he  began  to 
write  his  "History  of  England  from  the  Ro- 
man Invasion  to  the  Revolution  in  1688." 
By  the  keenness  of  his  insight,  the  absolute 
justice   and    the   non-partisanship   of   hia 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


»3 


a 


<i 


judgment,  Hume  became  one  of  the  great- 
est historians  of  his  period. 

In  1763  he  followed  tlie  Marquis  of  Hart- 
ford as  Secretary  to  Paris,  where  his  ar- 
rival caused  much  excitement,  and  where 
he  became  acquainted  with  all  the  great 
men,  Diderot,  d'Alembert,  Turgot,  and  even 
with  the  dreamer,  J.  J.  Rousseau. 

In  1767,  Hume  retired  to  Edinburgh, 
where  he  died  in  1776.  After  his  death  his 
Dialogues  concerning  Natural  Religion/' 
Essays  on  Suicide  and  the  Immortality  of 
the  Soul/'  were  published. 

Hume  takes  the  Bacon-Locke  Empiricism 
as  the  starting  point,  and  tries  to  make  a 
thorough  experiment  as  to  Human  strength. 
He  also  tries  to  find  the  limits  of  our  un- 
derstanding. According  to  him,  all  our 
Conceptions  are  partly  Impressions;  i.  e., 
impressions  of  our  senses,  ideas,  and  percep- 
tions, being  but  copies  of  our  Impressions, 
are  consequently  less  strong  and  vivid.  In 
religious  subjects  there  only  exists  one 
Truth,  but  no  knowledge,  although  religion 
has  developed  itself  from  a  psychological 
necessity. 


!;U 


,1 


94 


AB  C  of  Philosophy. 


Hume  places  Ethics  rather  on  a  basis 
of  social  Virtues,  such  as  well-wishing,  fair- 
ness, etc.,  than  on  self-interested  qualities. 

The  most  natural  and  moral  feeling  of  all 
is  that  of  Sympathy,  participation  in  the 
pleasures  and  sorrows  of  others.  Hume's 
influence  was  very  great,  not  only  in  Eng- 
land, but  also  in  Germany,  where  he  es- 
pecially attracted  the  attention  of  Kant. 


i  ?  .1 


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95 


CHAPTER   VI. 
PHILOSOPHY  IN  FRANCE. 

The  eighteenth  century,  enlightened  as  it 
was,  did  but  little  for  Philosophy,  but  the 
few  writings  of  that  time  became  so  popu- 
lar that  they  greatly  influenced  the  whole 
train  of  the  thought  of  the  period.  The 
French  developed  Locke's  theories  to  the 
point  of  empiricism  and  materialism. 

Baron  de  la  Brede  et  de  Montesquieu 
(1689-1755)  propagated  Locke's  theory  of 
the  Constitutional  Monarchy  in  his  ^^Esprit 
des  lois/'  He  examined  the  foundations 
and  the  guarantee  of  political  freedom. 
Laws  must  be  adapted  to  the  individual 
Natures  of  the  Nations.  Political  freedom 
means  that  man  can  do  that  which  he  ought 
to  do.  Judicial  power  should  be  absolutely 
independent  of  the  executive  and  legislative 
power. 


96 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


Jean  Francois  Arouet  de  Voltaire  (1694- 
1778)  owes  his  great  influence  to  the  fact 
that  lie  envelops  his  teachings  in  wit  and 
humor,  and  was  an  opponent  of  the 
Church  and  of  Civil  despotism. 

In  spite  of  his  l>eing  a  free  tliinker,  he 
affirms  that  the  belief  in  a  requiting  and 
punishing  God  is  a  nec(»ssnrj  mainstay  of 
moral  order. 

Jean  Jacques  Rousseau  (1712-1778). 
His  principal  works  in  philosophy  are:  ''Le 
Contrat  SociaV  and  ''Entile,'' 

He  thinks  that  the  ideal  constitution  for 
a  State  is  a  democracy  allowing  the  great- 
est possible  freedom  and  equality  to  all. 

The  material  well  being  of  the  people 
is  the  highest  aim.  Inequality  of  position 
is  evolved  through  the  civilization  called 
forth  by  Art  and  Science.  This  is  the 
greatest  evil  and  it  must  be  eradicated. 
Humanity,  to  become  once  more  content, 
must  return  to  its  primitive  state. 

In  ''Emile/'  he  lays  the  foundation  of  an 
education  based  on  simplicity. 

Etienne  Bonnet  de  Condillac  (1715- 
1780).    In  his  chief  work  *'Traite  des  Sen- 


ABC  of  Philosophy. 


97 


sations''  (The  Perceptions  of  the  Senses) 
de  Condillac  claims  that  sensation  is  the 
source  of  our  conceptions.  All  motives  of 
will  depend  upon  the  sensation  of  the  senses. 
Metaphysics  do  not  give  us  any  solution  as 
to  the  existence  of  things.  We  cannot  create 
any  substance,  but  we  can  create  qualities. 
These  do  not  exist  outside  ourselves,  but 
only  modify  our  sensations.  Not  the  exist- 
ence of  things  but  our  own  existence  is  to 
be  found  in  the  qualities  we  give  the  objects. 

Claude  Adrien  Helvetius  (1715-1771) 
agrees  with  Condillac.  His  most  important 
work,  ''De  VEsprit/'  was  much  read  and  ad- 
mired during  his  lifetime.  He  says  that 
metaphysical  investigations  are  useless,  as 
we  have  no  real  knowledge.  He  occupied 
himself  mostly  with  practical  questions. 

The  behavior  of  a  person  is  defined  by 
his  passions,  which  all  find  their  source  in 
the  love  of  sensuous  pleasures.  The  laws 
of  Society  should  be  so  ordained  that  the 
personal  advantage  of  the  individual  should 
go  towards  the  general  good,  and  thus  in  the 
end  benefit  the  individual. 


i 


98 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


Virtue  consists  in  the  abnegation  of  love 
for  the  general  good.  It  is  absurd  to  ask 
of  mankind  to  do  good  for  the  sake  of 
goodness  alone. 

Paul  Heinrich  Dietrich  Baron  v,  Hol- 
hach  (1723-1789)  was  born  at  Heidelsheim, 
but  lived  most  of  his  life  in  Paris.  It  was 
here  he  published  under  a  pseudonym  ^^Le 
Systeme  de  la  Nature.^^  Matter  is  not  a 
mass  of  dead  or  passive  substance,  move- 
ment is  not  given  to  it  by  an  outward  cause, 
but  is  an  immediate  and  innate  energy 
thereof.  Outside  the  usual  laws  of  move- 
ment appertaining  to  the  original  parts  of 
matter,  there  are  also  special  laws  for  every 
different  sort  of  matter.  Some  matter  pos- 
sesses the  faculty  of  uniting  itself,  while 
other  kinds  are  unable  to  do  so. 

From  this  is  derived  what  is  called  in 
physics  affinity  and  relation,  attraction  and 
repulsion.  The  moralists  in  the  world  call 
this,  love,  hatred,  friendship,  and  enmity. 
In  the  manifoldness  of  matter  and  of  move- 
ment Nature  becomes  an  active  and  living 
Whole,  whose  parts — although  unconscious- 
ly— necessarily  unite,  to  keep  up  activity 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


99 


and  life.  Man  is  not  a  complex  being; 
thinking  and  willing  are  but  modifications 
of  the  brain.  Religion  owes  creation  to  the 
suffering  and  the  ignorance  of  mankind. 
Only  he  is  virtuous  whose  activity  aims  at 
the  good  of  humanity,  only  he  is  wicked 
whose  thought  and  activity  aims  at  harm- 
ing his  fellow  creatures.  Just  as  the  Uni- 
verse is  founded  upon  the  necessity  or  the 
everlasting  relation  of  things,  so  on  this 
also  is  based  Morality.  Virtue  is  its  own 
reward,  the  really  virtuous  man  is  content 
with  the  inner  consciousness  of  well  doing. 
In  time  of  misadventure,  he  finds  a  support 
witliin  himself.  He  is  aware  of  his  dignity 
and  consoles  himself  with  the  thought  of 
tlie  justice  of  his  cause.  These  supports  are 
wanting  to  the  wicked.  The  teachings  of 
French  Philosophy  were  propagated  by 
popular  writings  through  the  whole  of 
French  Society.  Theatres,  Taverns  and 
Salons  were  the  schools  where  they  were 
imbibed. 

Eighteen  years  after  the  death  of  Hol- 
bach,  the  new  teaching  set  up  its  throne 
in  the  streets  and  armed  the  masses. 


I 


■  1 


100 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy 


CHAPTER  VII. 


PHILOSOPHY  IN  GERMANY. 


Leibnitz  (1646-1716). 

While  in  Enjiland  and  France  the  new 
philosophical  theories  had  begun  to 
flourish,  in  Germany  all  scientific  life  was 
crushed  by  the  thirty  years  war.  Only  very 
slowly  could  a  revival  of  philosophy  take 
place. 

One  of  the  best  known  philosophers  of  the 
seventeenth  century  was  Leibnitz.  He  tried 
to  formulate  a  combined  philosophy,  /.  e., 
he  tried  to  link  scholastics  and  Aristotelian- 
ism  to  the  new  theories,  speculation  to 
scientific  evolution,  and  science  to  Chris- 
tianity. He  gives  a  new  meaning  to  the 
word  Substance,  defining  it  as  a  simple 
being,  having  originally  an  individual 
power,  and  being  self-sufficing  and  an  epi- 


n 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


101 


tome  of  the  Universe.  All  bodily  and  men- 
tal phenomena  can  be  traced  back  to  the 
single  substance. 

Monads  are  mirrors  of  the  Universe. 
The  most  perfect  monad  is  God,  his  power 
and  activity  being  unlimited.  The  harmon- 
izing activity  of  body  and  soul  be  explains 
as  follows :  The  body  and  soul  each  has  its 
own  laws,  both  agreeing  on  account  of  a 
pre-established  harmony.  The  soul  acts  for 
the  final,  the  body  for  mechanical  causes, 
both  harmonizing.  In  one  of  his  poorest 
works  Leibnitz  tries  to  justify  the  actions 
of  God  in  reference  to  will. 

He  says  that  God  created  the  most  per- 
fect world  possible,  the  motive  of  creation 
being  his  unlimited  goodness.  Leibnitz's  sys- 
tem caused  great  sensation  and  profoundly 
influenced  the  thought  of  that  time,  as  he 
seemed  to  reconcile  all  opposites. 

Christian  von  Wolff  (1679-1754)  re- 
novated in  an  obscure  manner  the  theories 
of  Leibnitz.  He  takes  his  method  from 
mathematics,  beginning  all  his  dissertations 
with  definitions  which  he  leads  to  the  single 
proposition,  whereby  he  treats  the  simplest 


H  y 


H    1 


102 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


questions  as  fully  as  the  most  difficult. 
Wolff  does  not  wish  to  go  against  experi- 
ence and  general  comprehension;  on  the 
contrary,  he  only  wishes  to  teach  that 
which  can  be  mathematically  proved,  and 
understood  by  everyone. 

His  Ontology  treats  of  the  fundamental 
conceptions  of  existence;  this  is  followed  by 
Cosmology,  in  which  he  treats  of  all  moral 
conceptions;  this  again  is  followed  by  Psy- 
chology, which  he  treats  of  rationally,  and 
he  closes  with  Theology. 

In  ethics  Wolff  empliasizes  Reason  as  tlie 
criterion  of  our  actions.  Unity  is  not  de- 
pendent on  the  understanding  of  God,  as 
virtue  is  given  to  mankind  by  nature. 
Wolff's  philosophy  is  systematic  and  en- 
deavors to  become  one  with  general  cul- 
ture. From  this  activity  springs  the  Ger- 
man enlightened  philosophy,  which  does  not 
adhere  to  one  system,  but  embracer  all. 
Among  the  most  popular  of  these  philoso- 
phers are: 

Moses  Mendelssohn  (1729-1786).  Out  of 
pure  aversion  to  Spinoza  he  adheres  to 
Judaism,  which  he  rationalizes.   In  his  writ- 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


103 


ings  he  tries  to  establish  the  reality  of 
Natural  Religion  and  glorifies  Judaism  as 
its  foundation.  It  was  he  who  gave  Lessing 
the  model  for  his  Nathan  der  Weise,  which 
incorporates  the  type  of  modem  humani- 
tarian philosophy  and  Jewish  Rationalism. 
From  this  popular  philosophy  rises: 

Ootthold  Ephraim  Lessing  (1729-1781), 
who  tries  to  prove  that  the  whole  life  of 
the  soul  of  humanity  is  a  development  of 
the  natural  perfection  in  man  and  that  the 
different  religions  are  the  steps  made  dur- 
ing the  process  of  the  civilizing  of  mankind. 
Following  these  more  critical  than  posi- 
tiv^e  ideas  of  Lessing: 

Johann  Gottfried  Herder  (1744-1803), 
tries  to  prove  that  although  poetry,  philos- 
ophy and  religion  are  different  in  them- 
selves, they  are  all  closely  related  develop- 
ments of  the  ideals  of  humanity. 

He  also  endeavors  to  understand  history 
through  philosophy,  and  it  is  especially  in 
history  that  he  wishes  to  apply  his  humani- 
tarian  ideals.  These  ideals  are  further  en- 
larged upon  by  Goethe  and  Schiller. 


i'> 


'V 


Ml 


104 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Immanuel  Kant  (1724-1804),  the  most 
important  of  modern  philosophers  was 
born  in  Konigsberg.  He  studied  Theology, 
Mathematics,  Physics,  and  Philosophy  at  the 
University  of  his  native  town  where  later 
on  he  became  professor  of  Logic  and  Meta- 
physics. 

Greatly  influenced  by  the  English  philos- 
ophers Kant  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
everything  which  had  as  yet  been  accom- 
plished in  Metaphysics  was  but  vague  con- 
jecture, and  therefore  determined  to  fix  all 
the  principles  which  are  independent  of 
empiricism.  This  he  accomplished  in  his 
masterpiece : 

Die  Kritik  der  Reinen  Vernunft  (Criti- 
cism of  Pure  Keason). 

In  this  work  Kant  affirms  that  Reason 
alone  can  be  made  the  basis  for  all  critical 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


105 


observation.  His  intention  was  to  make  an 
"Inventory"  of  everything  which  had  been 
given  to  the  world  at  every  age  of  philoso- 
phical research,  i.  e.,  everything  that  had 
been  theoretically  (metaphysics)  accepted, 
practically  (theory  of  knowledge)  neces- 
sarily and  esthetically  (ethics)  appreciated 
or  rejected. 

He  therefore  divides  the  conceptions  into 
"a  priori,''  analytical  and  "a  posteriori," 
synthetical,  conclusions. 

Analytical  conceptions  (Urtheile)  join 
the  subject  (i.  e,y  the  inner  consciousness) 
to  the  object  (outer  facts)  through  identity, 
which  means,  that  the  opinion  is  the  same 
as  the  object.  Ex. :  The  rose  is  red — the  red 
could  not  exist  without  the  rose,  in  fact  is 
partly  contained  therein. 

In  Synthetical  conclusions  the  predi- 
cate is  independent  or  outside  the  range  of 
the  notion  {nota  bene  the  subject  which 
covers  the  notion).  In  other  words  if  I 
represent  by  predicate  a  different  thing  to 
that  which  is  described  by  the  subject  or 
notion,  the  conclusion  is  a  synthetical  one, 
if  on  the  other  hand  the  predicate  does  not 


106 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


^o  beyond  tlie  notion  it  becomes  identified 
and  consequently  the  conclusion  is  analy- 
tical. 

Metaphysics  only  deal  with  synthetical 
conclusions  which  are  "a  priori,"  i.  e.,  in- 
d(»pendent  of  Experience, 

The  question  then  is:  How  can  a  syn- 
thetical "a  priori"  conclusion  be  arrived  at, 
^Metaphysics  being  of  a  transcendental  na- 
ture? In  Physics,  however,  "a  priori"  de- 
ductions become  possible  as  they  are  based 
on  Evidence, 

From  this  principal  question,  three  prin- 
cipal sul)-(iuestions  ensue,  viz: 

I.  How  are  pure  mathematics  possil)le? 
(Ans.  By  transcendental  Esthetics,  i.  e., 

criticism  of  Empiricism.) 

II.  How  do  pure  Physics  become  pos- 
sible? 

(The  answer  lies  in  transcendental  an- 
alytics, i,  6.,  the  Criticism  of  Reason.) 

HI.  (a)  How  do  Metaphysics  become 
possible? 

(The  answer  is  to  be  found  in  transcen- 
dental Dialectics.) 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


107 


(b)  How  are  Metaphysics  possible  as  a 
Science? 

(The  answer  is  to  be  found  in  transcen- 
dental Theory  or  Method  teaching.) 

I.  Pure  Mathematics  are  possible  be- 
cause tliere  exist  "a  priori"  self  evident 
facts  such  as  space  and  time. 

II.  Pure  Physics  are  possible  because 
there  exist  perfectly  clear  conceptions  and 
fundamental  principles  in  Reason. 

III.  (a)  Metaphysics  considered  as  the 
doctrine  of  the  supernatural  were  possible, 
as  there  exist  ideas  which  are  beyond  Ex- 
perience, but 

(b)  Metaphysics  can  never  become  a 
science,  as  science  can  only  exist  when  the 
facts  of  which  it  consists  have  been  proved 
by  Experience. 

Therefore  a  purely  Metaphysical  philos- 
ophy is  impossible,  although  a  Metaphysi- 
cal philosophy  of  Nature  comprehending 
phenomena  exists.  To  this  is  added  a  Meta- 
physical Philosophy  of  Morals  which  asks  : 
What  are  we  to  do?    What  can  or  what 


108 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


shall  we  hope  for?  To  this  Kant  joins  a 
''Critique  of  the  Wiir  and  a  ''Critique  of 
Religious  Belief, ^^ 

I.  According  to  Kant's  transcendental 
estheticism  the  "a  priori"  conceptions 
Space  and  Time  are  the  outcome  of  our 
intelligence,  i.  e.,  we  think  them  thus: 

Space  is  the  form  under  which  alone  out- 
ward contemplation  becomes  possible. 

Time  likewise  does  not  exist  in  itself 
and  yet  does  not  appertain  to  the  objects.— 
What  they  are  in  themselves  we  can  never 
know,  consequently  space  and  time  are  only 
forms  of  phenomena  not  of  noumenay 
things  in  themselves.  In  spite  of  this, 
transcendental  Esthetics  impress  upon  us 
that  the  conception  of  space  and  time  have 
an  objective  validity,  as  according  to  Ex- 
perience every  object  is  subjected  to  Time 
and  Space. 

II.  Transcendental  Analytics  give  us  the 
fundamental  principles  by  which  our  in- 
tellect is  able  to  grasp  all  existing  facts. 
The  central  principle  from  which  we  de- 
rive the  others  is  judgment. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


109 


Kant  distinguishes : 


Judgment  of  ^Quantity' 
"  "  'Quality' 

"  'Relation' 
"  "  'Modality',  etc. 

From  these  forms  of  judgment  he  derives 
a  series  of  categories  which  relate  to  things 
of  Experience,  as  only  through  these  can 
the  objects  of  Experience  be  meditated.  In 
themselves  they  are  but  empty  formulas; 
=  Ex  =  Unity,  possibility,  necessity,  etc. 

From  these  categories,  he  further  derives 
a  series  of  conceptions.  Ex.:  By  joining 
a  series  of  observations,  the  result  is  Ex- 
perience; by  joining  the  cause  and  the 
effect  we  derive  change  or  variation.  If 
we  do  not  join  observations  we  can  never 
have  Experience,  but  only  disconnected 
Perceptions. 

III.  In  Transcendental  Dialectics  Kant 
tries  to  explain  that  Reason  forms  princi- 
ples out  of  ideas  and  to  our  intelligence 
gives  a  firm  basis.  As  soon,  however,  as 
Reason  tries  to  turn  these  principles  into 
practical  Experience,  we  are  liable  to  draw 


110 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


false  conclusions.  Ex.  It  is  a  false  con- 
clusion that  the  soul  is  immortal.  Tliis 
affirmation  is  a  Paralopum  of  physiolo^ 
for  which  we  have  no  proof  one  way  or  t]w 
other.  Kant  gives  us  a  series  of  such  theses 
and  antitheses  which  can  be  affirmed  and 
denied  with  equal  right. 

With  reference  to  rational  Theology, 
Kant  proves  that  the  idea  of  God  is  Init 
the  empty  Ideal  of  J*nrc  RcaHon.  all  proofs 
thereof  being  transient  and  unsatisfactorv. 
The  idea  of  a  Highest  Being  only  serves  as 
a  guide  to  our  actions. 

Ideas  of  God,  Love,  Fi-eedom,  etc.,  are 
only  practical  insomuch  as  we  are  inward- 
ly and  morally  convinced  of  their  necessity 
and  reality. 

The  illusion  of  being  able  to  base  theoret- 
ically the  Idea  of  Absolute  Necessity  has 
led  to  the  erroneous  view  that  Metaphysical 
philosophy  is  a  theory  of  the  Supernatural, 
but  there  exists  a  metaphysical  philosopliy 
of  Ethics.  These  are  treated  of  in  the 
''Critique  of  Practical  Reason''  and  in  ''The 
Foundation  of  the  Metaphysics  of  Ethics/' 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


Ill 


Practical  Reason  according  to  Kant  is 
that  Force  which  differing  from  theoretical 
Reason  strives  and  acts.  There  is  a  law  of 
Reason  which  regulates  our  desires  regard- 
less of  lust  or  personal  advantage.  He  does 
not  believe  that  the  laws  of  morality  are  the 
condition  of  everlasting  beatitude,  nor  that 
God  can  give  it  to  us,  but  that  it  is  a  law 
contained  in  Reason. 

The  fundamental  law,  says  Kant,  is 
"Handele  so  dass  die  Maxime  deines  Wil- 
lens,  zugleich  als  Princip  einer  allgenieinen 
Gesetz  zehung  gel  ten  konne  (Act,  in  such 
manner  that  the  maxims  of  your  Will  may 
be  principles  of  general  legislation. 

In  his  work  "The  Metaphysical  Begin- 
nings of  the  Science  of  Laws,"  Kant  treats 
of  the  philosophy  of  laws.  "Alle  menschen 
sollen  frei  sein  im  Handeln"  (Every  man 
should  be  free  to  act).  The  main  question 
is:  What  consideration  (forced  on  us  by 
law)  should  we  have  towards  one  another 
in  order  that  each  may  retain  his  freedom? 

In  legislation,  Kant's  models  are,  Mon- 
tesquieu, Rousseau,  and  Locke.  To  him  the 
Republic  is  the  ideal  State  conducing  to  en- 


112 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


during  peace.  "Religion  within  the  bounds 
of  reason  only''  contains  Kant's  philosophy 
of  religion.  Religion  must  be  founded  on 
Morals  and  not  morals  on  religion.  The 
only  really  true  religious  sentiment  lies  in 
the  cognizance  that  all  our  duties  are  the 
commands  of  God.  As  soon  as  religious 
Dogma  has  a  moral  hold  it  becomes  valua- 
ble. The  way  in  which  we  venerate  the 
Deity  he  considered  of  no  consequence 
whatever,  as  there  are  no  laws  to  guide  us  in 
the  regulating  of  our  lives  and  the  fulfil- 
ment of  our  duties. 

Among  Kant's  writings  are: 

^^The  Critique  of  the  Faculty  of  Judg- 


<(x 


mg 


» 


yy 


^^The  Dreams  of  a  Ghost  Seer/ 
^^De    Mundi    Sensibilis    atque    Intelli- 
^^gihilis  Forma  et  Principiis.^' 
On  Philosophy  in  General/^ 


<t 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


113 


II.  The  difference  between  Thought  and 
Cognizance. 

Thought  is  but  a  conception  having  no 
proofs  as  to  the  reality  of  its  object; 
through  sensation  it  becomes  real.  Every- 
thing belonging  to  the  imagination  is  sub- 
jective. 


His  most  characteristic  theories  are: 


1.  Space   and    Time    are   subjective    "a 
priori"  forms  of  perception. 


114 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

CONTROVERSY  ON  THE 
TEACHINGS  OF  KANT. 

The  teachings  of  Immanuel  Kant  pro- 
voked much  controversy  among  contempo- 
raries. It  will  suffice  to  mention  in  this 
connection  Jacobi  and  Hamann. 

Jacohi  (1743-1819)  agrees  with  Kant  in 
admitting  that  real  knowledge  can  only 
originate  through  fleduction  of  the  "a  priori'' 
conception,  but  this  again  leads  to  Panthe- 
ism, Spinoza's  system,  and  proves  to  be  a 
contradiction. 

Jacobi  affirms  that  man  possesses  in  his 
innermost  heart  the  source  of  an  immedi- 
ate consciousness  concerning  all  questions 
of  belief.  We  feel  the  presence  of  a  per- 
sonal God,  the  Freedom  of  our  Will,  and 


} 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


115 


the  worthiness  of  a  virtuous  life.  Reason 
cannot  give  us  these  necessary  convictions. 
In  spite  of  his  better  judgment  Jacobi  lays 
himself  oi)en  to  criticism  and  owns  up  in 
a  letter  to  a  friend  : 

"You  see  I  am  still  the  same,  a  pagan 
through  Reason,  and  a  Christian  with  all 
my  heart  and  soul.  So  I  swim  between  two 
currents  which  I  cannot  unite,  but  which 
both  carry  me  away.  Just  as  much  as  the 
one  carries  me  forward,  just  so  much  does 
the  other  pull  me  back." 

Johann  Georg  Hamann  (1730-1788)  finds 
himself  in  exactly  the  same  position.  He 
opposes  Kant's  criticism  by  the  unity  of 
Feeling  and  of  Faith. 

Kant's  teachings  also  found  many  admir- 
ers and  followers  who  popularized  his 
works.    Such  were: 

Professor  Schultz  of  Konigsberg. 

Salomon  Mainon. 

S.  Sigismund  Beck. 

They  all  agree  that  the  assumption,  that 
things  in  themselves  are  the  causes  of  our 
feelings,  is  absurd— but  that  Kant  had  not 
been  the  only  one  to  affirm  this.    The  great 


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sensation  caused  by  Kant's  theories  in 
Germany  was  not  felt  in  other  countries, 
as  German  philosophy  was  little  known  in 
England  and  in  France,  although  the  Ger- 
mans were  great  students  of  the  philosophy 
of  other  nations. 

Kant's  philosophy  was  too  diflflcult  for 
other  nations  to  understand;  it  was  only 
much  later  that  his  teaching  was  made 
known  in  England,  where  it  soon  found 
many  admirers. 


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CHAPTER  X. 


Johann  Gottlieb  Fichte  (1762-1814) 
agrees  with  Kant.  He  grasps  the  trans- 
cendental idealism  in  all  its  purity  by 
aflBrming  that  knowledge  is  the  principle 
of  existence  and  the  Subject  as  the  princi- 
ple of  the  Object.  In  1807-1808  he  was  ab- 
sorbed in  politics,  and  delivered  his  ^^Ad- 
dresses to  the  Oerman  Nation,^'  Among 
his  many  writings  are  to  be  mentioned 
''The  System  of  Moral  Teaching/'  ''On  the 
basis  of  our  Faith  and  the  supreme  gov- 
ernment of  the  world  by  God.'' 

Fichte  endeavors  to  derive  the  whole  of 
his  philosophy  from  a  single  principle, 
which  he  calls  the  self-consciousness  (Ego 
is  the  fundamental  principle,  from  which 
he  derives  everything).  His  method  is  the 
following: 


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He  starts  on  a  "thesis"  and  tries  to  find 
through  analysis  an  "antithesis,"  and 
unites  them  to  a  new  "thesis."  Fichte  is 
convinced  that  nothing  exists  in  itself.  All 
objects  are  what  they  are  thought  to  be, 
the  real  world  is  only  confirmed  by  the 
"ego."  All  Reality  originates  through  Be- 
lief. If  we  assume  an  outer  world  we  only 
do  so  for  our  own  interests. 

When  we  believe  in  Reality,  this  is  only 
a  conclusion  of  our  Will  power.  He  thinks 
that  Kant^s  teachings  are  to  be  under- 
stood in  an  idealistic  manner,  the  Object 
being  in  itself  what  we,  through  certain 
laws  of  the  mind,  imagine  it  to  be. 

From  this  last  mental  effort  we  arrive  at 
the  following  conclusion: 

The  principal  basis  of  the  Reality  of  the 
Ego  is  the  original  antagonism  between  the 
Ego  and  a  Something  outside  it,  of  which 
we  can  only  say  that  it  is  opposed  to  the 
Ego.  From  this  outside  Manifestation^ 
however,  nothing  new  is  brought  to  the 
Ego.  Everything  evolves  out  of  it  into 
eternity.  The  Ego  is  only  put  into  action 
by  the  immediate  opposition  of     the  out- 


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ward  Somethlnf/^  without  which  it  would 
never  have  acted;  and  but  for  this  activity 
it  would  never  have  existed.  This  outside 
manifestation  is  only  motion,  and  can  only 
be  felt  as  a  motive  power. 

Fichte  agrees  with  Kant  on  the  funda- 
mt^ntal  laws  of  Nature,  i  .e.,  the  conception 
of  Right  is  the  conception  of  the  relations 
of  free  individuals  towards  each  other,  and 
is  (]uite  independent  of  the  laws  of  moral- 
ity. 

The  conception  of  right  is  therefore  only 
technically  practicable.  In  his  teachings 
on  morality  he  says:  ^^Will  is  free,  and 
unfree.  Will  is  a  nonentity.  When  a  man 
wills  it,  he  is  free;  if  he  is  not  free,  it  is 
because  he  does  not  will  to  be  so,  and  lets 
others  drive  him.  All  morality  can  be 
traced  back  to  this  principle.  Let  every- 
one fulfil  his  destination.  Fichte  conse- 
quently terminates  much  of  what  Kant 
began;  not  only  philosophy,  but  also  his 
attitude  towards  religion. 

That  "Ego"  which  brings  forth  the  psy- 
chological and  moral  world  system  must 
also  evolve  the  idea  of  God.    God  as  a  sub- 


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stance  is  impossible;  He  can  only  be  the 
living,  acting,  and  moral  support;  in  other 
words  the  assurance  thereof.  God  is  a 
Being  freed  from  all  sense  emotions,  the 
Ruler,  so  to  speak,  of  the  transcendental 
world. 

Should  this  life  not  be  considered  use- 
less, we  must  look  upon  it  merely  as  the 
means  to  the  end,  which  is  a  life  after 
death.  Fichte  is  strictly  rationalistic;  he 
derives  Being  from  conceptions  and  iden- 
tifies them. 

His  teaching  is  a  rigorous  one,  especially 
his  formation  of  the  true  religion,  which 
consists  of  considering  life  as  the  necessary 
development  of  an  originally  perfect  and 
happy  life. 


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121 


CHAPTER  XL 

Joseph  von  Schelling  (1775-1854)  was 
the  son  of  a  clergyman.  He  studied  theol- 
ogy, and  became  a  professor  in  Jena,  His 
philosophy  is  not  consistent,  for  he  changes 
his  opinions  in  every  book,  his  ideas  are 
not  quite  clear  and  his  deductions  are  il- 
logical. His  lively  fancy  and  his  poetical 
conceptions  of  nature  and  of  history 
brought  him  a  great  many  admirers.  He 
soon  came  into  touch  with  Romanticism 
and  took  religion  and  philosophy  from  his- 
torical sources.  His  philosophical  writ- 
ings have  all  a  strain  of  romanticism;  he 
has  confused  the  teachings  of  all  the  great 
thinkers  in  his  writings.  Nevertheless,  his 
lectures  were  always  enthusiastically  re- 
ceived. 

Georg  Wilhelm  Friedrich  Hegel  (1770- 
1831)  received  a  splendid  classical  educa- 


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tion,  studied  theology,  and  soon  became  fa- 
miliar with  Kant's  and  Fiehte's  writings. 

HegePs  ''Logi&'  has  for  subject  the  de- 
lineation of  God  as  an  eternal  Being  be- 
fore the  creation  of  the  world. 

His  great  mind  imposed  upon  the  re- 
ligious, legal,  philosophical,  and  esthetical 
worlds  of  his  time;  and  he  will  always  be 
regarded  as  one  of  the  pioneers  of  philo- 
sophical research.  His  teachings  really  re- 
sulted in  the  formation  of  quite  a  set  of 
philosophers,  who  gathered  under  his  roof 
and  professed  to  belong  to  his  scliool,  which 
was  perhaps  the  most  remarkable,  both  in 
its  number  as  in  the  quality  of  its  members. 

The  subtlety  of  his  ideas  lay  in  his  pow- 
erful deductions  from  Kant's  doctrines, 
which  were  carried  to  an  extreme. 

In  a  way  Hegel  can  be  considered  as  the 
prophet  of  Kant's  philosophy,  especially  in 
the  idealistic  direction;  and  he  extracted 
from  Fichte,  Kant,  and  his  own  philosophy 
the  very  best  results.  Although  different 
in  terms,  he  comes  practically  to  the  same 
conclusion  as  the  above  mentioned,  namely, 
that  reason  is  the  only  really  real  thing, 


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123 


and  that  therefore  not  necessarily  every- 
thing which  is  real  is  reason,  but  the  rea- 
son is  necessarily  real.  The  result  of  the 
world's  progress  is  to  raise  the  originally 
unconscious  reason   to  spiritual  reason. 

His  theory  is  a  system  with  three  parts 
(1)  Logic,  (2)  Natural  Philosophy,  (3) 
Spiritual  Philosophy,  with  the  dialectic 
methods  constituting  the  pillars  on  which 
modern  philosophy  is  based.  Hegel  says: 
"Science  is  the  comprehended  history,  the 
memory  and  seat,  of  the  Absolute  Spirit." 

The  forces  of  Nature  are  the  realization 
of  the  idea  which  has  the  tendency  to  be- 
come Spiritual.  These  are,  therefore: 
Subjective,  Objective,  and  Absolute. 

Subjective  Spirit :  It  does  not  know  that 
it  exists. 

Objective  Spirit:  Has  become  conscious 
of  its  existence. 

The  Absolute  Spirit,  Ood,  is  that  eternal 
and  real  Truth  in  which  Reason  takes  an 
independent  part.  Nature  and  history  are 
but  the  outward  forms  of  God's  omnipo- 
tence. 

Hegel's  system  is  the  best  worked-out  ra- 


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125 


I 


tionalism,  into  which  the  most  opposite  ele- 
ments are  interwoven.  His  fundamental 
idea  is  that  thinking  and  being  are  identi- 
cal. Together  with  Fichte  and  Schelling 
he  represents  purely  Objective  Idealism. 

Friedrich  Ernst  Daniel  Schleiermacher 
(1768-1834),  son  of  a  clergyman,  was  also 
a  clergyman.  His  most  important  works 
are  ''Reven  Ueher  Die  Religion''  and  ''Mono- 
logen/'  and  are  criticisms  on  the  teaching 
of  Morality.  Schleiermacher  represents 
Spinoza's  pantheism,  but  says  that  Religion 
is  absolutely  different  from  Knowledge.  To 
him,  philosophy  means  the  search  for  the 
Absolute,  and  the  attaining  to  a  clear  un- 
derstanding of  it. 

The  history  of  philosophy  is  the  unful- 
filled longing  for  the  Absolute.  On  this 
sceptical  basis  he  founds  his  theoretical, 
and  in  ethics,  his  practical  philosophy. 

He  gives  self-consciousness  as  the  con- 
cluding agreement  between  thinking  and 
being.  Space  and  time  are  the  ways  and 
means  for  the  existence  of  things,  and  not 
our  imagination.  Every  individual  exist- 
ence must  be  bodily  and  mental. 


In  thought  God  is  always  One,  not  mani- 
fold. The  world  fills  space  and  time,  while 
the  Deity  is  beyond  space  or  time.  He  as- 
serts the  independence  of  Will,  which  even 
plants  possess.  Ethics  are  the  expression 
of  Reason.  The  greatest  good  is  that  which 
is  brought  forth  by  moral  actions;  ethics 
are  not  a  single  good,  but  a  chain  of  all 
truths.  Example:  Family,  State,  Church, 
Science,  and  Art. 

Religion  is  not  a  science ;  it  has  no  Truth, 
and  therefore  can  not  clash  with  other 
teaching. 

Religion  is  a  pious  feeling,  in  which  God 
reveals  Himself  to  man,  and  in  which  man 
realizes  his  dependence  on  God. 

Schleiermacher  considers  the  chief  dog- 
mas of  Paganism,  Judaism,  and  Christian- 
ity as  necessary  steps  towards  perfection. 

Johann  Friedrich  Herhart  (1776-1841). 
A  serious  and  zealous  follower  of  Kant, 
^ho  adheres  strictly  to  the  standpoint  of 
criticism,  and  who  wishes  to  solve  by  re- 
flection the  contradictions  which  Kant's 
philosophy  contains. 


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127 


i 


I 


Some  of  his  theories  are:  If  we  do  not 
wish  to  return  to  the  mire  from  which  Kant 
has  extracted  us,  we  must  keep  to  the  as- 
sertion that  everything  of  which  we  are 
conscious  is  pure  imagination.  Position 
and  not  existence  is  the  purpose  of  things 
(the  absolute  position  of  the  object  of  our 
thoughts).  The  soul  is  a  simple  being 
without  any  qualities,  and  has  only  the 
possibility  of  development  and  preserva- 
tion. To  have  Reason  means  to  judge  by 
means  of  a  highly  developed  understand- 
ing. To  be  sensible  means  to  reflect,  and 
then  to  judge  by  the  conclusion  drawn  from 
this  reflection. 

Herbart  puts  philosophy  under  the  con- 
ception of  estheticism,  and  concludes  from 
this  that  ethics  are  a  science  which  judges 
the  relations  of  Will  in  an  ethical  and  an 
esthetic  manner. 

He  bases  pedagogics  and  government 
upon  these  ethical  and  psychological  teach- 
ings. 

Oustav  Theodor  Fechner  (1801-1887) 
was  professor  of  physics  at  Leipzig.  His 
teaching  is : 


The  only  empirical  fact  is  the  conscious- 
ness felt  by  each  individual. 

All  spiritual  events  in  the  human  and  in 
the  animal  organization  are  parallel  to  bod- 
ily events.  All  mechanical  events  in  Na- 
ture are  accompanied  by  spiritual  ones. 

Spinoza  looks  upon  the  body  and  soul  as 
the  two  sides  of  one  and  the  same  being. 
According  to  our  standpoint,  we  look  upon 
the  object  as  spirit  or  matter. 

Matter  is  a  sum  of  atoms. 

Spirit  is  a  chain  of  conscious  units;  the 
whole  world  is  the  representation  (sum- 
mary) of  a  perfect  knowledge,  namely,  the 
Deity. 

The  soul  as  the  bond  of  the  body  is  in 
reality  the  same.  In  a  narrower  sense  the 
seat  of  the  soul  is  the  brain,  spine,  and 
nerves. 

Plants  also  have  souls,  i.  e.,  they  have 
real  feelings. 


• 


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CHAPTER  XII. 

FRENCH  PHILOSOPHERS  OF  THE 
XIX  CENTTURY. 

The  philosophy  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury begins  after  the  outbreak  of  the  Rev- 
olution of  1789,  which  had  opened  up  a 
new  field  of  thought. 

Auguste  Comte  (1798-1857)  gave  him- 
self up  completely  to  Metaphysics.  Going 
crazy  through  overwork,  he  was  put  into  an 
asylum,  but  was  soon  cured,  and  became 
professor  at  the  "Ecole  Polytechnique." 

Comte  is  the  founder  of  Positivism.  He 
argued  against  Metaphysics  and  every  in- 
troduction of  the  causes  of  the  beginning 
and  of  the  end  of  the  cosmos  into  philoso- 
phy. As  these  problems  will  always  remain 
obscure,  we  can  only  observe  facts;  every 


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129 


explanation  as  to  tlieir  probable  causes  or 
relations  is  useless.  Tlie  basis  of  all  sci- 
ence is  Mathematics,  followed  by  Physics, 
Chemistry,  and  Logic.  Logic  is  the  most 
important  of  these,  without  which  the 
others  cannot  be  uiidc^rstood.  He  arranges 
his  theory  according  to  the  laws  of  Statics 
(numbers)  and  Dynamics  (classifying 
things  according  to  tlieir  derivation). 

Statics  deal  with  the  conditions  of  the 
stability  or  equilibrium  of  the  different 
parts  of  society,  and  is  tlie  theory  of  the 
mutual  action  and  reaction  of  contempo- 
raneous social  phenomena. 

Dijnnmivs  deal  with  the  laws  of  social 
evolution  of  all  classes. 

With  Positivi^in  we  arrive  at  Socialism, 
which  is  represented  by  St.  Simon.    Promi 
nent  among  socialists  is : 

Pierre  Proudhon  (1807-1865),  who,  em- 
bittered against  every  religious  and  social 
law,  denounces  these  as  the  source  of  all 
misery,  and  considers  all  possessions  as 
theft. 


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CHAPTER  XIII. 

ENGLISH  PHILOSOPHERS  OF  THE 

XIX  CENTURY. 

Jeremiah  Bentham  (1747-1832)  founds 
Morality  on  general  necessity,  and  fights 
against  the  idea  that  morality  has  a  divine 
origin. 

Economy  is  the  greatest  interest  of  poli- 
tics. 

John  Stuart  Mill  (1806-1873)  was  influ- 
enced by  Auguste  Comte.  His  teachings 
are: 

1.  Human  knowledge  can  only  take  as 
subjective  such  causes  as  are  given  us 
through  experience;  scientific  investigation 
is  only  an  affirmation  of  facts. 

2.  There  does  not  exist  a  general  Truth. 
What  we  call  Truth  is  only  an  aggregation 
of  certain  truths  which  we  unite  into  one. 


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131 


Mill  is  the  founder  of  modern  logic,  and 
is  very  careful  in  his  assertions.  He  treat- 
ed the  questions  of  Political  Economy  very 
successfully,  and  had  at  heart  the  interests 
of  the  industrial  classes. 

Herbert  Spencer  (1820-1904)  gives  us  a 
recapitulation  of  the  history  of  Natural 
Science,  and  the  Ethical  and  Logical  evo- 
lution of  English  Philosophy.  Together 
with  Comte  and  Mill  he  discards  Theology 
and  Metaphysics,  and,  with  Darwin,  all 
contemplation  of  Nature. 

He  considers  all  conceptions  of  mankind 
as  the  result  of  human  nature  and  activity; 
he  is  the  founder  of  the  Philosophy  of  Evo- 
lution. The  greatest  of  all  contrasts  in 
Religion  and  Science.  The  average  mind 
affirms  the  existence  of  Reality;  Objective 
Science  shows  us  that  it  cannot  be  created 
as  we  think  it  to  be.  Subjective  Science 
shows  us  why  we  cannot  think  it  what  it 
really  is,  and  why  we  are  still  forced  to 
believe  in  its  existence.  Religion  declares 
that  Nature's  inscrutable  Reality  is  one  of 
its  objects.  Everything  undergoes  develop- 
ment,  the  aim  being  equilibrium.     In  con- 


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sequence  of  the  development,  t.  e,,  of  the 
continued  influence  of  outer  forces,  the  de- 
velopment ceases,  when  the  equilibrium  is 
lost.  In  the  ^^ Principles  of  Psychology'' 
Spencer  assumes  that  a  spiritual  substance 
is  the  basis  of  Psychological  phenomena. 


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133 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


CERMAN  PHILOSOPHERS  OF  THE 
XIX  CENTURY. 

Arthur  Schopenhauer    (1788-1860). 
His  most  important  works  are: 

1.  ^^Veher  die  vierfache  Wurzel  des  Satzea 
vom  zureichenden  GrundeJ' 

2.  "Die  Welt  als  Wille  und  Vorstellung/' 

3.  ^^Die  heiden  Grundprohleme  der 
EthikJ' 

Schopenhauer  teaches: 

(a)  Criticism  (Kant)  is  right  in  assum- 
ing that  imagination  is  of  a  purely  sub- 
jective nature,  because  all  that  we  see  about 
us  is  merely  imagination. 

(b)  The  subject  (the  one  who  imagines) 
contains  in  himself  the  world.  There  is  no 
Object  without  a  Subject.  The  world  exists 


n 


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k 


only  for  the  subject,  consequently  the  world 
is  imagination. 

Up  to  this  point  he  agrees  with  Kant, 
but  the  different  views  discerned  by  Kant 
have  to  be  founded  first,  and  then  traced 
back  to  one  source,  and  to  do  this  Schopen- 
hauer makes  the  assertion  of  the  "zurei- 
chenden  Grunde"  (sufficient  basis),  which 
he  affirms  to  be  the  source  of  all  concep- 
tions and  from  which  he  derives  three  dif- 
ferent methods  of  imagination.  Further- 
more, he  assumes  that  the  Will  is  the  ^^Be- 
ing  in  itself'^  of  all  things.  All  things  have 
become  objects  through  the  Will,  and  have 
afterwards  become  identical  with  it.  The 
world,  therefore,  is  not  merely  imagination, 
but  also  Will,  and  in  that  respect  a  reality. 

The  starting  point  for  the  contemplation 
of  all  other  objects  is  our  own  body.  This 
is  given  us  not  only  through  Imagination, 
but  also  through  Will.  Will  power  in  itself 
is  only  a  conception  of  Will. 

All  Will  is  striving,  all  striving  suffer- 
ing. Even  when  the  goal  has  been  attained 
it  becomes  the  starting  point  for  new  as- 
pirations.   Therefore  only  Suffering  is  pes- 


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135 


itive,  and  this  world  the  worst  possible. 
The  only  means  of  freeing  oneself  of  pain  la 
the  abolition  of  Will;  affirmation  of  the 
Will  to  live  is  egoism;  absence  of  egoistic 
motives  is  the  criterion  of  all  moral  ac- 
tions. 

Egoism  is  unlimited;  Pity  sometimes  be- 
comes noblemindedly  magnanimous. 

The  principle  of  Morality  is:  Justice 
and  the  well-being  of  others. 

The  denial  of  the  Will  to  live  is  the  high- 
est form  of  ethical  perfection  and  the 
transition  to  asceticism.  It  is  only  the  fear 
of  Death  that  keeps  people  fighting  against 
the  evils  of  the  world. 

Life  consists  of  the  unfulfilled  wishes  of 
a  self-torturing  people.  The  more  intelli- 
gent the  individual  the  greater  is  his  ca- 
pacity for  suffering. 

Optimism  is  a  "screaming  absurdity." 
Schopenhauer's  pessimism  has  had  a  great 
influence  on  the  minds  of  his  own  and  the 
present  generation. 

Friedrich  Wilhelm  'Nietzsche  (1844- 
1900),  professor  of  Philosophy  1844-1900. 
He    is    one    of    the    most    remarkable    of 


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moderD  philosophers.  His  subtle  power 
and  his  perfect  style  contributed  to  shake 
the  faith  in  the  existing  laws  of  morality. 
He  is  an  excellent  example  of  Lombroso's 
theory  that  genius  is  akin  to  insanity.  His 
broadmindedness  overlapped  the  limits  of 
a  normal  mind,  and,  partly  through  over- 
work and  the  use  of  narcotic  drugs,  he  be- 
came insane.  It  is  strange  to  note  that  it 
was  after  the  symptoms  of  insanity  had  ap- 
peared that  he  wrote  his  most  important 
works.  His  theory,  suggested  by  Schopen- 
hauer and  greatly  influenced  by  his  friend- 
ship with  Richard  Wagner  (which,  how- 
ever, did  not  last  long),  was  that  Morality 
is  not  based  on  the  laws  of  religious  con- 
ventionality or  Reason,  but  chiefly  on  in- 
stincts which  should  in  all  cases  be  satis- 
fied. Nietzsche's  ideal  was  the  "C/eber- 
mensch'-  {Superman) ,  who  desires  to  ar- 
rive at  his  aim  regardless  of  the  conse- 
quences to  others — a  man  of  such  extraor- 
dinary capacity  and  moral  strength  that 
he  overleaps  the  bounds  of  ^^yood  and  evil"' 
which  he  teaches  us  in  his  greatest  work, 
'^Jenseits  von  Gut  und  Bose/^ 


!■):' 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


137 


Carl  Robert  Eduard  von  Hartmann 
(1842-1906).  Originally  an  army  man,  he 
began  in  1864  his  remarkable  work,  ''Die 
Philosophie  des  Unhewusten/^  which 
made  an  immense  sensation.  For  the  first 
time  it  was  pointed  out  how  much  our  feel- 
ings, actions,  and  emotions,  when  analyzed, 
can  be  traced  to  instinct  and  not  to  inten- 
tion. Leaning  on  the  positive  philosophy  of 
Hegel  and  Schopenhauer,  Hartmann  tries 
to  find  a  link  between  the  logical  and  illogi- 
cal ideas  and  the  instinctive  Will;  and  to 
amalgamate  the  abstract  Monisms  of  specu- 
lative systems  with  the  realistic— Individ- 
ualism into  a  concrete  monism.  As  a  nat 
ural  philosopher,  he  convinces  us  of  the 
basis  of  exact  empiricism  through  the  induc- 
tive method  of  argument  of  an  existing  bond 
between  modern  natural  philosophy  and 
meaphysical  speculation. 

He  was  a  rather  successful  opponent  of 
Kant  in  the  ''Theory  of  Understanding.'' 
His  ethics  are  based  on  Theology  (Hegel) 
and  on  monism  (Schopenhauer).  His  re- 
li^ous  convictions  are  a  mixture  of    the 


f 


138 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


dogmas  of  Christ  and  Buddha,  while  his 
esthetical  point  of  view  is  based  on  con- 
crete idealism,  in  firm  opposition  to  Plato's 
Abstract  Idealism. 

His  essays  on  religious  and  social  ques- 
tions, woman's  emancipation,  spiritualism, 
and  educational  questions,  have  aroused  a 
great  deal  of  controversy,  but  his  ^^Die 
Philosophic  des  TJnhewusten^^  made  a  fun- 
damental change  in  some  of  the  most  im- 
portant philosophical  conceptions. 

He  wrote  a  great  many  works,  of  which 
the  most  important  are  his  ^^Aesthetik/' 
^^Kritische  Orundlegung  des  transcendent- 
alen  Realisms/^  ^^Die  Geisterhypothese  des 
Spiritisms  und  seine  Phantome" 


m 


APPENDIX. 


'I 

; 


ib 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


141 


APPENDIX. 


The  following  well-known  writers  can- 
not directly  lay  claim  to  the  title  of  phi- 
losophers, inasmuch  as  they  did  not  origi- 
nate a  system  of  philosophy,  or  continue  to 
develop  the  system  of  one  of  their  predeces- 
sors. They  are,  rather,  scientists,  and  as 
^'Philosophy  consists  of  the  same  subjects 
as  other  sciences,"  so  their  researches  and 
discoveries  cannot  remain  unnoticed  in 
the  study  of  philosophy.  If  philosophy  is, 
generally  speaking,  the  sum  total  of  syste- 
matic knowledge,  investigating,  as  it  does, 
in  a  somewhat  hypothetical  manner,  the 
causes  of  all  phenomena,  both  of  mind  and 
matter,  science  is  that  knowledge  of  con- 
crete phenomena  based  on  certainties  which 
are  founded  on  demonstrated  irrevocable 
facts,  and  excluding  all  possibilities  of 
speculation. 


142 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


It  is,  therefore,  as  impossible  to  exclude 
these  men  from  a  philosophical  manual  as 
it  is  to  ignore  the  light  and  influence  that 
Sir  Isaac  Newton's  discoveries  have  had 
upon  the  schools  of  philosophy  during  and 
after  his  lifetime. 

The  idea  of  Evolution,  apart  from  its 
purely  scientific  meaning,  is  after  all  an 
ethical  one,  as  it  shows  the  striving  of  mere 
matter  towards  self-perfection. 


EVOLUTIONISTS. 

Charles  R,  Darwin,  the  Naturalist  (1809- 
1882),  was  the  grandson  of  a  physician, 
Erasmus  Darwin,  who  was  the  author  of 
works  which  maintained  a  form  of  Evolu- 
tion which  was  subsequently  expounded 
by  Lamarck.  The  great  Charles  Darwin  em- 
barked  as  a  naturalist  on  board  the  "Bea- 
gle'' in  1831.  After  working  at  South 
American  Geology,  he  returned  to  England 


ABCof  Philosophy. 


143 


in  1836.     In  1840    he    published  the  ''Zo- 
ology  of  the  Voyage  of  the  Beagle,''  In  1844 
he  first  gave  definite  form  to  his  theory  of 
"Evolution    by    Natural    Selection."     His 
greatest  work,    ^^The  Origin  of    Species/' 
was  published  in  1859.    This  work  at  once 
established  him  as  the  greatest  naturalist 
of  the  nineteenth  century.    He  subsequent- 
ly  published  '^Variation  of  Plants  and  Ani- 
mals under  Domestication/'  in  1868.     This 
was  followed   by   ^^The  Descent  of' Man" 
1871,  and  '^The  Expression  of  the  Emotions 
m  Man  and  Animals/'  in  1872.     He  then 
elaborated  a  paper  which  he  had  read  be- 
fore the  Geological  Society  in  1838  into  a 
book    on     the    -Formation    of    Vegetable 
Mould  through  the  action  of  Worms"  •    it 
was  published  in  1881.  ' 

In  the  domain  of  botany,  he  wrote  the 
Fertilization  of  the   Orchid/'   1862    sup 
plemented  by  -Effects   of   Cross  and   Self 
Fertilization/'  1876. 

Darwin's  influence  on  natural  history 
was  so  great  that  he  has  been  called  the 
Copernicus  or  the  Newton  of  the  organic 
world.     In  reclaiming  Man  as  part  of  liv- 


'i    II 


144 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy, 


ing  Nature,  he  put  science  into  closer  con- 
tact with  natural  history,  and  founded  the 
genetic  method  by  wliich  we  follow  and 
study  the  evolution  of  the  past  and  of  the 
present  to  be  able  to  understand  the  ex- 
isting state  of  things. 

Darwin,  wlio  liad  the  great  pleasure  of 
watching  the  progress  and  finally  the  com- 
plete triumpli  of  his  theories,  found  many 
enthusiastic  admirers  and  followers,  espe- 
cially in  Germany. 

Ernst  Heinrich  Haeckel  was  born  in  1834. 
A  distinguislied  naturalist,  who  combines 
the  accomplishments  of  popular  exposition 
and  successful  generalization.  Apart  from 
zoological  work,  he  has  devoted  his  life  ta 
the  doctrine  of  Evolution,  and  to  making 
that  doctrine  popular.  Greatly  influenced 
by  Darwin,  he  stood  at  one  time  almost 
alone  in  Germany  as  the  champion  of  the 
evolutionist  theory.  Darwin,  speaking  of 
Haeckel's  '^Natural  History  of  Creation/^ 
said:  "If  this  work  had  appeared  before 
my  essay  on  the  'Descent  of  Man'  had  been 
written  I  should  probably  never  have  com- 
pleted it."    Haeckel's  works  are  brilliantly 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


145 


written,  and  offend  many  by  their  remorse- 
less consistency  and  their  impatience  with 
theological  dogma.  He  has  always  strenu- 
ously opposed  compromise,  and  defended 
the  freedom  of  science.  As  a  philosopher 
he  may  be  described  as  a  "Monist,''  and  the 
tendency  of  his  writing  is  certainly  ma- 
terialistic. The  thoroughness  of  his  labors 
and  his  courage,  lucidity,  and  eloquence 
have  given  him  a  pre-eminent  position 
among  Naturalists. 

Thomas  Henry  Huxley  (1825-1895).  This 
great  English  biologist  studied  medicine  in 
London,  and  accompanied  (1846-1850) 
Captain  Owen  Stanley  on  an  Expedition 
for  surveying  the  Torres  Strait,  It  was 
there  that  Huxley  began  his  zoological 
studies  which  later  on  revolutionized  the 
scientific  world. 

Cuvier's  classification  of  the  animal 
world  into  four  parts,  viz. :  Vertebrata,  Mol- 
lusca,  Articulata,  Radiata  (each  corre- 
sponding to  an  archetype  animated  by  the 
"idea"),  still  held  good,  and  was  accepted 
by  von  Baer. 

Meanwhile  the  "Naturphilosopher"  Goe- 


146 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


the,  and  Oheriy  although  not  completely 
losing  idealistic  conceptions,  had  so  far 
grasped  the  principle  of  the  "co-relation  of 
parts,"  deduced  by  Cuvier,  as  to  anticipate 
Evolution. 

On  this  basis  Huxley  began  his  investi- 
gations. His  first  important  paper  was: 
^^On  the  Anatomy  and  the  Affinities  of  the 
Family  of  Medusae-'^  It  is  strange  that 
Huxley  would  not,  in  the  beginning  at 
least,  accept  the  theory  of  evolution,  owing 
no  doubt,  to  his  rooted  aversion  to  "a  pri- 
ori" reasoning,  without  mechanical  con- 
ception of  its  mode  of  operation. 

Neither  Spencer  nor  Darwin  were  able 
to  convert  him. 

In  1858  he  gave  a  lecture  on  "The  Theory 
of  the  Vertebrate  Skull,"  in  which  he  dis- 
posed once  and  for  all  both  of  the  Arche- 
type and  of  the  Deductive  Method. 

In  1859  appeared  Darwin's  ''The  Origin 
of  Species/*  and  at  last  he  was  partly  con- 
verted to  the  Theory  of  Evolution,  although 
he  maintained  to  the  end  that  it  was  want- 
ing in  proofs.  ''Man's  Place  in  Nature'' 
was  published  in  1863. 


A  B  C  of  Philosophy. 


147 


From  1870  onwards  Huxley  devoted  him- 
self practically  only  to  his  public  duties, 
and  to  writing  for  periodicals  on  philoso- 
phy and  theology.  The  attitude  which  he 
assumed  towards  these  subjects  was  gen- 
erally one  of  scepticism.  He  died  at  East- 
bourne  in  1895. 


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